ADB, Australia to Help Papua New Guinea Expand Microfinance to Rural Poor
The FINANCIAL The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Australian Government will support a $24 million project to help rural communities in Papua New Guinea access credit and financial services. The Microfinance Expansion Project is expected to generate jobs and boost growth in some of the country's poorest and most isolated regions. Lack of access to finance is a major constraint to rural development in Papua New Guinea. ADB estimates that only 15% of the population has access to formal or informal banking facilities, and many parts of the country still use a non-monetary barter system for transactions. "This project will help rural areas move from a subsistence to a modern cash-based economy and in the process it will increase incomes and reduce poverty by stimulating informal business activity," said Robert Wihtol, Director General of ADB's Pacific Department. According to ADB, the project will extend and build on the experiences and lessons learned from ADB'