MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Good Return, UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and Pacific (ESCAP) to Support Women’s SMEs in Cambodia, Fiji, Nepal, Samoa with Credit Guarantees, Technical Assistance

Good Return, the Australia-based affiliate of the US-based NGO World Education, recently partnered with the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) to support women-owned small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) through a credit guarantee scheme in Cambodia, Fiji, Nepal and Samoa. Under the program, “International impact investors will be providing the funds to be guaranteed to partner financial institutions” in the four countries. As part of the effort, Good Return and ESCAP will work with each local financial institution to perform “gender self-assessments to assess [its] internal structures, rules and policies – as well as financial product offerings – to ensure the institution is able to serve its women’s clients…with tailored products and services…”.

ESCAP Executive Secretary Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, holds, “As we tackle these difficult times, it is important that we work with our partners to address the urgent needs of women entrepreneurs. In partnering with Good Return, ESCAP hopes to not only address these needs in the short-term, but develop an ecosystem of financial partners who are able to appropriately service women-led or women-owned SMEs in the long term.”

Good Return is the trade name of the World Education Australia, which offers financial services and educational programs intended to empower people to improve their living standards. Prior to the launch of this program, Good Return already had operations in Cambodia, Indonesia, Fiji, Laos, Nepal, Philippines, the Solomon Islands and Tonga. During 2019, the organization brought in revenue of AUD 3 million (USD 2.1 million).

ESCAP, originally known as the Economic Commission for Asia and the Far East, was founded in 1947 in Shanghai, China, with the purpose of assisting with post-war reconstruction. It moved its headquarters to Bangkok in 1949 and changed its name to ESCAP in 1974. With 53 member states and nine associate members as of 2020, ESCAP acts as a think tank and “regional intergovernmental platform” seeking to promote “social development” in the Asia-Pacific region.

By Jessica McLeod, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

ESCAP press release
https://www.unescap.org/news/united-nations-escap-and-good-return-team-provide-financial-injection-women-smes-times-covid

Good Return homepage
https://www.goodreturn.org.au/

Good Return Annual Report 2019
https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5a13b478a9db09a2c886df90/t/5e33869a2b2d5a648e21df4e/1580435135365/AR+2019+corrected.pdf

World Education homepage
https://worlded.org/

ESCAP homepage
https://www.unescap.org

“Asia and the Pacific SDG Progress Report 2020”
https://www.unescap.org/sites/default/files/publications/ESCAP_Asia_and_the_Pacific_SDG_Progress_Report_2020.pdf

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