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New fund launched to support pro-poor business projects
A new fund, with a budget of US$3 million, was launched in Hanoi on Tuesday to provide funding to new business projects that will directly benefit the poor.
The Viet Nam Challenge Fund is supported by the Ministry of Planning and Investment, the UK Department for International Development (DFID) of the United Kingdom and the Asian Development Bank, according to a statement released Tuesday.
The grant size for each project will be $30,000-250,000, and the grant can be up to 49 percent of the total investment costs of the project, the statement said.
“Challenge funds first originated in the UK, but have since been implemented by DFID and others across a number of regions worldwide, and have proven to be an efficient development tool,” said Fiona Lappin, head of DFID.
The fund in Vietnam will help absorb “some of the business risks associated with innovative projects that aim to increase employment and incomes for the poor,” Lappin said.
“In emerging economies, such as Vietnam, markets particularly in rural areas, often do not function efficiently or fairly, limiting the opportunities for the poor to participate in and benefit from the growth process," said Ayumi Konishi, Asian Development Bank Country Director.
“This new approach will help the poor’s access to the market and to make them benefit from it, rather than to provide them with direct public support,” he said.
thanhnien
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