Lesotho Competitiveness and Financial Inclusion Project

The development objective of Competitiveness and Financial Inclusion Project for Lesotho is to increase access to business support services and financial products targeted at MSMEs and entrepreneurs, especially women and youth. This project has three components. 1) The first component, Enhancing Financial Inclusion and Resilience of Micro, Small and Medium enterprises (MSMEs), has the following sub-components: (i) Enhancing Government to Business (G2B) Digital Services to more effectively serve MSMEs; (ii) Improving Access to Financial Services; and (iii) Strengthening the Resilience of MSMEs to Climatic Shocks. 2) The second component, Scaling Support for Entrepreneurship and MSMEs, has the following sub-components: (i) Establishing an Entrepreneurship Hub and Seed Financing Facility; (ii) Scaling Up the Lesotho Enterprise Assistance Program (LEAP) for MSMEs; and (iii) Expanding SME Participation in High Potential Value Chains. 3) The third component, Project Management and Implementation Support, aims to provide support for the management and implementation of project-associated activities.