In the framework of EBSOMED, CAWTAR, organizes its first EU Med Roadshow "Scaling Up Finance for Inclusive Development" to be held on June 18 and 19, 2019, in Tunis, Tunisia.The event offers stimulating opportunities to further develop networking and exchange of experiences and will gather actors from the Euro-Mediterranean Ecosystem to act as a multi-stakeholders meeting including a broad and open discussion of all aspects related to access to finance for SMEs and micro enterprises in SNC.

In fact, Micro, Small and Medium sized Enterprises (MSMEs) play an important social and economic role in SNC and access to finance is one of their levers for growth, without adequate funding and without liquidity, no business can operate, invest and grow.

In recent years, an increasing range of alternative financing options, that have an impact on SMEs financing, has become available. They constitute a real opportunities for MSMEs to tap into a wide range of alternative financing instruments which can offer unprecedented solutions to deal effectively with the main barriers that MSMEs face in financial markets.

During the 2-day Roadshow, speakers, moderators and participants will:

• Discuss the issues at the heart of difficulties in accessing credit, especially for youth and women innovative SMEs and micro enterprises through:
  • The presentation of a regional review regarding access to finance in SNC based on the findings of a recent research: main gaps (gender/sector/ size...), challenges and barriers, for instance the lack of: liquidity, working capital, adapted financial products, access to credits lines, financial intermediary, and low level of financial education/literacy...
  • Addressing the demand side needs to overcome barriers regarding access to finance
  • Addressing the Supply side needs regarding legal and operational frameworks to overcome the limits of the traditional financing tools
• Address the opportunities to improve MSMEs financing such as crowdfunding, business angels, fintech
• Benefit from case studies and lessons learned from projects considered as models to maximize access to finance through financial education and other non-financial services (NFS)
• Develop recommendations aiming to promote access to financial and to non-financial services
• Address these developed recommendations in the joint session CAWTAR-OECD “Idea Factory”

This “Idea Factory,” is co-organized by the OECD (MENA-OECD Initiative on Governance and Competitiveness) and CAWTAR (EBSOMED project). It will consist in a dynamic discussion between the participants from the CAWTAR/EBSOMED project and OECD/SME Working Group and on three key topics:

• How to better harness digital and other technologies for start-ups and SMEs' growth? How to integrate a technological dimension into national SMEs agendas?
• How to leverage technology to facilitate access to finance for young and female entrepreneurs?
• How can digital technologies help to improve business environments by rationalising business licences and procedures and reducing opportunities for bribes and corruption?

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Agenda