SIDBI has launched a programme for Certified Credit Counsellor for MSME on July 11. The program was launched by S S Mundra, Deputy Governor at Mumbai and attended by senior officials of RBI, banks and other stakeholders concerning MSME including from industry associations.

MSMEs sector faces several challenges in accessing credit for conversion of opportunities into business. As per 4th MSME census, only 7 per cent of SMEs use financing from institutional and non institutional sources, reflecting a huge opportunity for growth of the sector through solving problems in accessing credit.

Speaking on the occasion, Mundra underscored the importance of developing new tools and solutions for increasing the credit flow to MSMEs such as Udyami Mitra and Certified Credit Counsellor. He expressed confidence that CCCs will develop as an important link between MSMEs loan aspirants and lenders.

The initiative is likely to usher in market linked approach in this area with the demand and supply factors leading to success of the scheme. SIDBI hopes that the supply side intervention from its side would kindle the latent demand for such advisory function and may lead to replication of international models such as BDC’s advisory services for MSMEs in Canada, seeing the light of the day in India.

Ajay Kumar Kapur and Manoj Mittal, DMDs, SIDBI also briefed the house that that the Bank has been engaged in offering institutional solutions in an evolving market. They stated that SIDBI has been constantly striving to augment credit flow to the MSME sector through various strategic initiatives.

They also informed that the Bank had posted a healthy profit of Rs 1120 crore for the year ended March 31, 2017. The Bank’s gross NPA percentage declined during the year to 1.2 per cent, from 1.51 per cent whereas the net NPA improved to 0.44 per cent  from 0.73 per cent in 2016.