31 Aug 2020

Citizen Entrepreneurial Development Agency (CEDA) has set aside P40 million to  ensure continued operation for their clients.

Answering a question in Parliament on recently, Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry, Ms Peggy Serame said the Special CEDA Emergency Response Fund  was created to provide working capital, rescheduling and providing repayment holiday to their clients.

Furthermore, the minister said CEDA was aware of the hardships that had affected its clients and had put in place special relief packages to cushion them against the adverse impact of the pandemic. She said the interventions put in place by CEDA were considered sufficient to address the likelihood of distress faced by SMMEs, adding that the agency would continue to assess the situation every three months on a case by case basis and respond accordingly as part of the monitoring process.

So far, she said,  CEDA has disbursed P31 million to support 3 985 businesses under the fund, adding that as at March 2020, the agency had 3 934 small and micro businesses under its portfolio valued at P547.7 million, with arrears of over P210 million of the small and micro businesses loan book.

Ms Serame said the agency further identified 1 550 businesses, which were affected by the pandemic and the companies were given repayment holidays from April 2020 for a maximum of 12 months.

Selebi Phikwe East MP, Mr Kgoberego Nkawana had asked the minister to brief Parliament on CEDA loan arrears by SMMEs and whether CEDA would consider rescheduling or writing off such loans in recognition of hardships occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic. Ends