Minister of Communications and Information Technology Dr. Tarek Kamel witnessed today the signing of a cooperation protocol between Egyptian National Post Organization (ENPO) and Social Fund for Development (SFD).
The protocol aims to develop the process of funding micro-enterprises nationwide. Another purpose of the agreement is to set a simple, practical mechanism to facilitate for citizens to get SFD loans.
Based on the protocol, the two parties will cooperate in offering citizens credit services through the SFD funds. This target can be achieved through making use of the widespread of post offices all over Egypt, which amount to over 3700.
ENPO’s database will be used to promote SFD activities among target segments. Data and information required for receiving microloans and following up the cashing process as per the policy of SFD will be available on the database. This in turn will put into force a comprehensive development program covering most Egyptian governorates.
Acting ENPO Chairman Dr. Ashraf Zaki noted that the protocol implementation comes as part of the several community projects that Egypt Post offers. Egypt Post, he added, plays the role of a community institution that gained the trust of all social segments in offering financial and postal services and contributing to social projects.
Such projects help increase job opportunities as well as support the economic reform program and microenterprises and small projects in collaboration with concerned organizations, he said.
According to the protocol, Dr. Zaki said, ENPO will select the post offices to join the program and indentify certain conditions as to population, target beneficiaries, commercial activities and features of the established projects. Moreover, SFD will fund projects for offering postal services following the franchise system.
For his part, SFD Managing Director Mr. Hany Seif El Nasr explained that the fund will decide, in cooperation with ENPO, the areas where credit services will be offered based on several factors like population density, target segments of low-income families and youths seeking jobs, single-parent women and people with special needs.
Accordingly, services and activities of SFD will reach the largest number of citizens, who will be introduced to the fund’s financial and non-financial services. This will contribute to facilitating new, stable job opportunities for them and raise the quality of their living standards.
The possibility of founding a national Egyptian organization or making use of an already established one that carries out credit services, collection and follow up through post outlets is currently under study.
Seif El Nasr pointed out that SFD will train the employees selected by ENPO to carry out the program. Dr. Zaki and Mr. Seif El Nasr signed the protocol.
About Egypt Post
Founded in 1865, the Egypt National Post Organization (ENPO) is the largest provider of postal services in Egypt. The organization enables individuals, businesses, and government and other entities to communicate and conduct business with each other and the world through a full range of reliable and economical services covering the delivery of correspondence, documents, money and goods.
