The Social Development Bank organizes the second regular forum for microfinance intermediaries

Under the patronage of His Excellency the Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Social Development Bank, Eng. Ahmed bin Sulaiman Al Rajhi, the Social Development Bank organized the second regular forum for microfinance intermediaries, at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Riyadh, in the presence of Her Royal Highness Princess Modi bint Khalid, Secretary General of the King Khalid Foundation and Chairwoman of the Board of Directors of the Al Nahda Society, and His Excellency the Deputy Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, Professor Majid Al-Ghanimi, His Excellency the Assistant Minister of Labor and Social Development, Mr. Mohammed Al-Jasser, and His Excellency the Undersecretary for Women’s Empowerment in the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development, Ms. Hind Al-Zahid, in addition to the presence of representatives of more than 100 microfinance brokers accredited by the bank.

This forum is part of the bank's strategic roles concerned with developing the microfinance sector and providing support to civil society organizations and institutions to serve the targeted segments .
The forum began with a review of the Social Development Bank’s strategic transformation plan 2020-2025 and the bank’s goals for developing the microfinance sector, most notably the allocation of 10.5 billion Saudi dollars in financing to beneficiaries of self-employment and micro-enterprises .
This was followed by a dialogue session aimed at reviewing the opportunities and capabilities for associations to practice microfinance, by maximizing the return recovered from all endowments and social responsibility programs with the private sector, and the incentives provided by the environmental system supporting the microfinance sector .
This was followed by the bank launching the first classification and credit system for associations and civil society institutions, to raise the efficiency of financing partners and beneficiaries according to professional standards, by building a credit record for the beneficiary, which allows those with credit excellence to have additional products and opportunities, as well as raising the efficiency of partners by measuring some indicators, the most prominent of which is “ the efficiency of collection management.” , Product Diversity, Portfolio Rotation Efficiency .”
On the other hand, His Excellency the CEO of the Bank, Mr. Ibrahim bin Hamad Al-Rashed, announced, as part of the forum’s activities, the launch of the “ Thamar ” award to enhance competitiveness in maximizing the return on social investment, targeting microfinance intermediaries, according to the performance and qualitative initiatives presented by each intermediary.
Through 4 main paths :
⁃ Portfolio recycling and collection process
⁃ The path of innovation in products and business solutions
⁃ Capacity building and qualification path
⁃ Track of economic development indicators (sales - job creation - alliances)
Al-Rashed stated that the “ Thamar ” award would motivate microfinance intermediaries to enable productive families to engage in the local market and contribute to the expansion and sustainability of these businesses in a way that enhances their investment role in supporting the Kingdom’s economy, indicating that this sector is promising and vital, and many outputs depend on it, whether In terms of economic empowerment, job creation and social stability .

For his part, His Excellency the Executive Vice President of Social Finance at the Social Development Bank, Mr. Sultan bin Abdulaziz Al-Humaidi, confirmed that the bank’s organization of the forum aims to provide an interactive platform that enables microfinance intermediaries to exchange knowledge and experiences and learn about the best local practices and capabilities provided by the support system for the microfinance sector .
In the first session of the forum, the bank had launched a number of qualitative financing products and business solutions that aim to enable the sector to expand its business in conjunction with its commitment to high levels of governance and quality that serve the goals of the Kingdom’s vision in developing the third sector, and enhancing its contribution to the development of micro-enterprises, including It has a positive effect on stimulating the national economy, local output, and nationalization .

The event concluded with the announcement that 30 associations in various regions of the Kingdom had joined the bank’s network of microfinance intermediaries, with total financing portfolios exceeding 70 million riyals, bringing the total number of intermediaries to 108 microcredit practicing associations .

It is worth noting that the Social Development Bank is the largest and most widely accessible portal for economic empowerment with a social impact for male and female citizens in Saudi Arabia. The bank’s products and services can be learned by visiting the bank’s website www.sdb.gov.sa