ISLAMABAD : PPAF has disbursed Rs90 billion for micro-credit in 5.6 million cases since commencement of its operations in April 2000 till December 31, 2013. A significant portion of PPAF funding (around 75pc) is provided for micro-credit in rural areas where most of the poor exist as these loans are used mainly in agriculture, commerce and livestock sectors. Total funds available with PPAF as of December 31, 2013 were over Rs. 25 billion including Rs.18 billion for micro-credit and Rs. 7.6 billion for grants. The sources said as of December 31, 2013, Rs. 17 billion have been deployed for access to micro- credit.
They said the funds provided to PPAF for micro-credit are used for on-lending to Partner Organizations (POs) which provide micro-credit loans to individuals/communities following a demand driven approach.
As of December 31 last year the number of active borrowers financed by Partner Organizations (POs) is 900,000 of which 55pc are women.
They said grant funds are provided to POs for small scale water and infrastructure schemes, health and education interventions, social mobilization, livelihood enhancement and disaster management, etc.
A total of Rs. 7.6 billion available with PPAF at present will be used for these activities for which commitments have already been made.
The sources said since April 2000 to December 31, 2013, PPAF's outreach has been as follows: Districts 121, Partner Organizations 126, Villages/Settlements 98,000, Community Organizations formed 121,500 and Credit/Common interest groups formed 348,000.