Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Ministry of Finance of the Republic of Tajikistan signed a Memorandum of Understanding on the project "Access to Green Financing" on May 2, 2012; one of the conditions was to establish the State Institution “Project Implementation Unit” (PIU).
The total amount of the project is: $11,870,000
- The bulk of the funding comes from the ADB grant, which is $10,000,000
- Contribution of the sub-borrowers is $980,000
- Contribution of the Government of Tajikistan is $140,000
- In addition, technical assistance is provided by the Japan Fund for Poverty Reduction (JFPR) in the amount of $750,000
The establishment of the Project Implementation Unit for "Access to Green Financing" was approved by the Government Decree No. 37 on February 9, 2013.
Project Objective:
Streamlining the system of microfinance in Tajikistan by financing: the creation of energy-saving and eco-friendly homes, purchasing appropriate energy-saving equipment, heat-insulating materials, water heaters and heating devices.
The project is aimed at issuing soft loans to families for these purposes and thereby improving the conditions of these households.
Operating Principles:
With the help of the PIU, loans were granted to the microcredit organizations MDO "Imon International" and MDO "Arvand" for issuing loans for the purchase of energy-saving building material and equipment.
The amount of each line of credit is $ 4.4 million.
During the working period, loans were granted to 6,225 borrowers, in the amount of 50.7 million TJS (as of September 2016), at an interest rate of no more than 28%.
Within the framework of the project, the maximum issue amount to the borrower is no more than $5,000.
The micro-lending organizations receive a loan from the PIU financial resources at the refinancing rate of the National Bank of Tajikistan for a period of 3 to 5 years.
The project "Formation of Resistance to Climate Change in the Pyanj River Basin”
Along with this, the Center implements one of the components of the project "Formation of Resistance to Climate Change in the Pyanj River Basin", through a line of credit that was launched in 2013.
According to the Grant Agreement, signed on September 18, 2013 between the Government of Tajikistan and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), ADB provided a grant in the amount of $21,550,000 for the formation of resistance to climate change in the Panj River Basin.
Out of the total amount of the above-mentioned grant, $2,627,000 was allocated to the Project Implementation Unit for the implementation of the project "Access to Green Financing" under the Ministry of Finance of Tajikistan.
Of this amount, 40% is used to diversify the borrower's income, and 60% to the line of credit: $1,900,000 is directed to the line of credit for the development of agriculture in this region and $923,800 is directed to diversify the borrowers' income.
Within the framework of the project, microcredit organizations "Imon International", "Oxus" and "Humo" signed sub-loan agreements with the Project Implementation Unit for obtaining equal sums equivalent in somoni (the national currency of the Republic of Tajikistan). Each of the microcredit organizations received $706,000 which was recalculated in somoni (at the exchange rate on the day of issue).
During the ceremony of signing this agreement, the importance of the green financing project was noted, which initially caused much controversy and doubt, but it was decided that the implementation of the pilot project would show the effectiveness of this practice.
The ADB is confident that, the successful implementation of the project, in the future, will give an opportunity to increase the number of projects on "green" financing in Tajikistan and will give the opportunity to introduce this practice in other countries.
Funds for the project "Access to Green Financing" are not allocated to all micro-lending organizations, but only to those who meet ADB criteria, the most important of which are: financial stability, transparency, reliable authorized capital and potential.
