The program SANAD was launched six months ago by Baobab Tunisie, a leading microfinance institution, with the support from the United States government through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
SANAD addresses particularly small and medium businesses which were directly impacted by COVID-19, to help them maintain their activities, improve working conditions, as well as sustain jobs and create new jobs’ opportunities.
The program, which was launched and implemented in record time, was able to support more than 4,000 small and medium businesses of which approximately 50% are located in the interior regions such as Beja, Jendouba, El Kef, Siliana, Kasserine, Sidi Bouzid, Gafsa, Tozeur and Medenine. Gabes, Sfax, Mahdia and El Fahs. Furthermore, 50% of the beneficiaries are women and youth owned businesses.
Through SANAD, Baobab Tunisie and USAID were able to provide financial support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), amounting to 2.3 million dinars in grants, 24 million dinars in loans.
“The SANAD program, which we have developed with our partner USAID, will help thousands of entrepreneurs directly impacted by COVID-19 to sustain and strengthen their activities. This nine-month program targets a total number of 8,400 beneficiaries with a total fund of 55 million dinars in loans and grants, in order to sustain and create more than 9,600 jobs. Baobab Tunisieis aware of the difficult context in which thousands of small companies operate. Via this initiative, we affirm our commitment and solidarity with the owners of small and medium enterprises, especially those located in the interior regions, as well as those owned by women and youth, to enable them to sustain their activities and recover from the current crisis.” - Mr. Sahl Zargouni, General Manager of Baobab Tunisie
“Our partnership with Baobab Tunisie has helped provide much-needed capital and expertise to thousands of small and medium enterprises in different regions. This program is a concrete and practical example of the private sector’s role in mitigating the economic impact of COVID-19 and of the commitment of the United States government to support Tunisian entrepreneurs." - Mr. Peter Riley, USAID/Tunisia Mission Director