OREANDA-NEWS. October 25, 2012. With the financial support of the government of Switzerland, International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, is launching a project to advice lo-income citizens of the Kyrgyz Republic how to renovate their housing and obtain funding for necessary materials to improve their quality of life, reported the press-centre of IBC.

The Housing Microfinance Advisory Services Project will work with several financial institutions to help them enable low-income Kyrgyz households to obtain funds on reasonable terms and to make their own home improvements. Moreover, the project will develop and introduce a set of tools to help lenders provide a range of housing microfinance services.

“As part of its support to the private sector in Kyrgyz Republic, Switzerland wants to enhance housing lending in the country,” said Remy Duiven, Deputy Director of the Swiss Cooperation Office in the Kyrgyz Republic. “This project will provide advice to low-income citizens on how to improve their accommodation and get access to finance.”

"Most low-income Kyrgyz families cannot afford new homes, and instead conduct renovations in their existing residences, needing to borrow funds to purchase construction materials and pay for qualified labor,” said Victor Mints, the IFC Project Manager. “IFC will help microfinance organizations to launch a housing microfinance product that serves the demand for home improvement loans.”

The project will help a substantial number of people to improve the quality of their lives. People with low incomes will be enabled to minimize the expenses of home improvements through savings on labor costs. The clients will get support in the form of loans and receive advice on both how to conduct the works themselves and where to purchase discounted materials.

Reference:
About Swiss support to Kyrgyzstan
The Swiss Cooperation Office provides development assistance to Kyrgyzstan and coordinates projects in such areas as health, private sector development, public sector reforms and infrastructure. Since 1994 Switzerland has provided around CHF 250 million to the Kyrgyz Republic in the form of technical, financial and humanitarian support. For more information, please visit www.swisscoop.kg.

About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused exclusively on the private sector. We help developing countries achieve sustainable growth by financing investment, mobilizing capital in international financial markets, and providing advisory services to businesses and governments. In the fiscal year 2012, IFC investments reached an all-time high of more than USD 20 billion, leveraging the power of the private sector to create jobs, spark innovation, and tackle the world’s most pressing development challenges. For more information, please visit www.ifc.org.