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Can Public-Private Partnerships Benefit Populations Excluded from Water Services?
Although public-private partnerships may have achieved relatively disappointing results in terms of extending access to water for poor populations, the arrival of private operators has nevertheless of...
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What is the Actual Performance of Public-Private Partnerships for Urban Water Utilities in Developing Countrie...
By examining progress achieved and problems encountered by 65 public-private partnerships (PPPs) implemented on different continents, a recent World Bank study is providing some objective facts from a...
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SME access to financing: capacities matter as much as resources
Donors must not simply focus on adopting strategies based on providing financing, they must also focus on demand. One of the reasons why it is difficult for SMEs to access financing is they are unable...
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Private equity investment in sub-saharan african SMEs
SME financing cannot be enhanced simply by scaling up volumes of financing. SMEs need to upgrade so that they can meet the eligibility criteria of bankers and other investors. I&P is aware of the diff...
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The difficulties bank face in financing SMEs in Sub-Saharan Africa
Firms and banks alike would seem to be responsible for the lack of SME financing in SSA: firms because of their shortfalls in meeting the classic requirements of the banking sector and banks because t...
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A perspective on SME Financing in Africa
SMEs may account for the bulk of firms and employment in SSA, yet they contribute very little to GDP. This is partly due to the financing constraints they meet. However, these firms have considerable...
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Financing SMEs in a context of strong information asymmetry
The acuteness of information asymmetries between bankers and entrepreneurs, which cannot be offset by adequate loan securitization, constitutes one of the main stumbling blocks to SME financing in SSA...
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Credit to the Private Sector in Sub-Saharan Africa: Developments and Issues
Despite signs of progress, SSA is still lagging compared to other regions when it comes to scaling up the volume of loans allocated to the private sector. If it is to catch up, some progress needs to...
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Bank financing to SMEs: what are Africa's specificities?
Using bank survey data, this article compares the scale and type of bank lending to SMEs in Africa to that available outside the region. The data shows that bank financing to SMEs in Africa is less si...
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Rethingking finance for Africa's small firms
African banks had just started to show interest in SMEs when the global crisis reversed the tide. The risk for SMEs is that they will suddenly be barred access to credit whereas they need long-term f...
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