The United Nations Industrial Development Organization, in partnership with the Sindh Enterprise Development Fund, disbursed €2.03 million, equivalent to more than Rs650 million, in grants to seventeen selected small and medium sized enterprises under the third round of its co-financing programme, while simultaneously inviting applications for a fourth batch targeting rural Sindh. The grants were awarded under an enterprise grant programme named Poverty Alleviation and Inclusive Development Across Rural Sindh, aimed at reducing poverty through sustainable economic activity, strengthening local enterprises, and creating employment opportunities across the region.
UNIDO Officer in Charge Badar ul Islam said the organisation has allocated more than €20 million, around Rs6.5 billion, for the enterprise development component of the broader programme, speaking at the SME Grant Award Ceremony for the third batch alongside the launch of the Enterprise Grants Window for the fourth batch. UNIDO is implementing and supporting enterprise development across five rural districts, including Thatta, Badin, Sujawal, Tharparkar, and Larkana.
The overall programme carries a total value of €50 million, funded by the European Union and implemented by UNIDO, with €20 million of that total specifically allocated toward private enterprise development. Of this €20 million allocation, approximately €11 million has already been disbursed in grants to fifty one SMEs and two hundred fifty micro enterprises since 2023, with the grant programme remaining open for applications until 2029. Individual SME grants are capped at €200,000, while micro enterprise grants are capped at €10,000, with the programme structured as a co-financing model rather than full project financing, requiring project runners to contribute equal or greater financing themselves to encourage serious commitment and sustainable business models.
Special Assistant to the Chief Minister Sindh on Investment and Public-Private Partnership Projects, Syed Qassim Naveed Qamar, described SMEs and micro enterprises as the backbone of the economy, particularly in rural areas, emphasising the importance of supporting sustainable growth at both microeconomic and macroeconomic levels through investment, innovation, and industrialisation. He noted that the fund represents the Government of Sindh investing directly in its own rural economy, with resources ready for strong proposals moving forward.
SEDF Chief Executive Officer Khizar Pervaiz said the maximum grant size has been set at Rs35 million per project, with the fourth round of co-financing targeting the selection of twenty SMEs, bringing the total grant size for the batch to between Rs700 million and Rs1 billion. SEDF will accept new applications until the fifteenth of September, twenty twenty six, with grants directed toward priority sectors including fisheries and aquaculture, information technology, research and development, and waste recycling and bio-waste utilisation, with women led businesses positioned as a cross-cutting priority throughout the selection process. Under the scheme, UNIDO and SEDF will jointly finance up to seventy percent of eligible project costs, while applicants are required to contribute at least thirty percent or more of the remaining costs themselves.
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