Punjab to provide micro-finance loans for SMEs

Lahore: Punjab government aims at promoting the establishment and uplift of small industries in the province, and will provide micro-finance loaning with an estimated outlay of Rs one billion to develop the local industry and step up exports.

This was stated by Punjab Minister Haji Muhammad Ishaq, while talking to a delegation of entrepreneurs from the small and medium enterprises (SME) and cottage industry sector here on Tuesday, according to a handout. He said a sum of Rs 400 million had been allocated for the development of small enterprises, which was the backbone of the industrial sector, and along with agriculture forms the basis of national progress and prosperity.

The minister said that a vast industrial network was being developed in the province with requisite facilities to provide an investor-friendly environment and boost production. The government was also working to train a skilled workforce for agriculture and industry, vital for progress of both sectors, he added.