Agreement on Key Indicators to Track Financial Inclusion of Small Businesses

01/17/2016 - 3:08pm

September 2015 - The Alliance for Financial Inclusion (AFI), an implementing partner of the G20 GPFI, has identified key indicators to monitor the financial inclusion of small businesses.

Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are essential for economic growth because they account for over 95% of businesses worldwide and provide more than half of all jobs. Yet 200 million businesses worldwide don't have the financing necessary to invest and create new jobs. Policy makers and financial institutions working on accelerating SME finance are often impeded by a dearth of good data.

Policies and interventions must be based on an informed assessment of how SMEs access and use financial services. The AFI indicators are intended to provide a comprehensive view of the state of financial inclusion for SMEs in a given country. They can help decision-makers formulate policy, set targets and monitor progress in SME finance.

The AFI SME Finance Working Group, which developed the indicators, includes representatives from 50 member institutions (Central Banks, Regulatory Authorities, Treasury Departments and Ministries of Economy and Finance) from 42 countries. The Working Group adopted several indicators from the OECD and GPFI and worked closely with existing organizations in the field, including the SME Finance Forum.

For the set of indicators, see SME Financial Inclusion Indicators Base Set.