The Government has decided not to reject loans to small and medium scale entrepreneurs merely on the basis of the Credit Information Bureau (CRIB) reports. The rationale behind this decision is to facilitate the obtaining of loans by the small and medium scale entrepreneurs, State Minister of Development Banking and Loan Schemes Shehan Semasinghe said.
The State Minister made these observations at a seminar themed “Whether the Credit Information Bureau is an obstacle in obtaining financial facilities” held on Friday (31) at the Anuradhapura Central Bank auditorium on a directive of Prime Minister and Finance Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa to raise awareness among the business community on the role of the Credit Information Bureau and the importance of its data when credit facilities are sought.
He said the main problem for the small and medium scale entrepreneurs is that they cannot reapply for loans in view of the records available at the Credit Information Bureau. Consequently, the President and the Prime Minister/ Finance Minister took this decision having gone into their grievances. Semasinghe said the predicament of the small and medium scale entrepreneurs, being rendered helpless after defaulting on bank loans is not mainly due to their fault but to the failed economic mismanagement of the previous Government from 2015 to 2019. He said in view of the numerous social discourses held time and again on this issue, the Government introduced tax concessions and financial relief package to make the small and medium scale sector a viable entity. The new measures adopted by the Government will certainly help alleviate the misery of the small and medium scale entrepreneurs, he added.