OREANDA-NEWS  On 17 February was announced, that as a part of the "Year of Youth" State Programme, MicroCredit Bank developed a number of measures on financial support of young entrepreneurs in 2008.

Within this action plan, MicroCredit Bank signed agreements on cooperation with the Kamolot Social Youth Movement, the Fund to Support Special Initiatives, the Centre to Support Entrepreneurship and Farming, and developed cooperation with the Centre of Secondary Specialised Professional Education.

In accordance with the Agreement signed jointly with the Kamolot Youth Movement a series of events were conducted to promote entrepreneurial activity among youth, provide organizational and financial support to young entrepreneurs, and to organise the project titled "Yosh Tadbirkor – Elga Madadkor".

Within the frames of cooperation with the Fund to Support Special Initiatives joint projects were organized to provide financial support to women entrepreneurs of Andijan, Ferghana, Samarkand, Jizzakh, Bukhara and Navoi regions. To date MicroCredit Bank has extended soft loans to 304 women-entrepreneurs for the total amount of 334.5 million soums.

Pursuant to the Presidential Decree No. 3434 of 25 May 2005, the bank extended loans for some 13.2 billion soums to tackle the issues of women employment particularly in rural regions.

According to the agreement on cooperation with the Centre of Secondary Specialised Professional Education, seminars were conducted with the graduates of colleges. The seminars addressed the mechanisms and conditions of provision of soft microfinance services. In 2008 the MicroCredit Bank extended soft micro-loans for the total of 1,270.3 million soums to 1,292 graduates of colleges for the development of entrepreneurial activity.

In order to involve youth in entrepreneurial activity, the bank conducted the contest for the "Best project presented by young entrepreneur."

District commissions considered 385 projects of young entrepreneurs as a part of this contest. The republican stage of the contest and the award ceremony were conducted on threshold of the independence day of Uzbekistan.

In 2008, the staff of the MicroCredit Bank conducted trainings on financial support of entrepreneurship through soft lending, within the frames of the "School of young entrepreneurs" Project organized by the Centre of Youth Initiatives "Kelajak Ovozi". At this time the process of financing of high potential business plans in different spheres of entrepreneurial activity is in progress.

In addition to this, pursuant to the Presidential Decree of 18 May 2007 No. 3878 "On additional measures for material and moral support of young families" and the State Programme of the Year of Youth, last year the bank extended loans for some 15 billion soums for financial support of young families. Of these, microfinance services made up 8.2 billion soums, and consumer loans for various purposes – 6.8 billion soums.