BAGHDAD, August 30, 2010 - Leaders of 14 Iraqi Microfinance Institutions (MFIs) assembled in Baghdad recently for the inaugural meeting of the Iraqi Microfinance Industry Network. The main item on the agenda was the signing of a Code of Conduct & Ethics that mandates ethical behavior and a commitment to low-income Iraqis. ...more >

TELAFAR, August 25, 2010 – Finding access to quality financial services is a challenge for small-scale farmers everywhere. In northern Iraq’s Ninawa province, the obstacles blocking impoverished rural farmers from bank credit can seem almost insurmountable. The province has three banks, but none like to lend money to borrowers whose incomes are ...more >

RAMADI, July 17, 2010 - The Iraqi Youth Initiative, a new private sector program designed by the USAID-Tijara Provincial Economic Growth Program recently opened its first office in Anbar at the Ramadi Business Center. The inauguration of the Youth Entrepreneurship Resource Center coincided with the awarding of microfinance loans to seven of ...more >

BAGHDAD, July 7, 2010 – USAID through its Provincial Economic Growth Program, today released State of Iraq's Microfinance Industry, a 52-page report that describes the growth and emerging trends of a microfinance industry that rapidly is building financing systems accessible to all Iraqis.

Iraq’s microfinance industry was established seven years ago with financial ...more >

BAGHDAD, June 9, 2010 - Iraq’s rapidly growing microfinance industry reached a major milestone this month when the Al-Tadhamun (TDMN) microfinance organization opened its third branch office in the Northern Province of Ninawa. The opening brings the total number of microfinance branches and satellite offices across Iraq to 100 and underscores the ...more >

NAJAF, May 23, 2010 – A new private sector initiative designed by the USAID-Tijara Provincial Economic Growth Program to create employment opportunities for young Iraqis was inaugurated in Najaf today by U.S. Ambassador Christopher Hill, Najaf Provincial Council chairman Sheik Fayid Alshimari, Najaf Gov. Adnan Alzurfi and USAID Mission Director Christopher Crowley.

Funded ...more >

NAJAF, May 15, 2010 - The Najaf Small Business Development Center (SBDC) recently hosted a two-day trade fair and conference that brought together 20 companies belonging to India’s Bohra trading family with leading Najaf entrepreneurs. Attended by more than 100 Iraqi business professionals, the conference was designed to promote increased trade and ...more >

BAGHDAD, March 30, 2010 - Challenge: Subscribing to sanitary regulations that keep food and water safe is a lot easier than enforcing them. That’s what Iraq learned several years ago when cholera began appearing in three disparate provinces. About the same time, Iraqis discovered that the majority of food staples they received ...more >

FALLUJA, March 17, 2010 - Ten microfinance institutions supported by the USAID-Tijara Provincial Economic Growth Program are taking the lead in rebuilding Iraq one business at a time. The loan capital is especially appreciated in towns like Falluja, which prior to the Sunni Awakening was plagued by terrorist attacks and random violence. ...more >

February 14, 2010 - In an effort to promote Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) profitability, USAID's Tijara Provincial Economic Growth Program recently launched updated curricula to help Iraqi entrepreneurs establish and grow successful businesses. From January 17 – 25, leaders from the Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs) across Iraq, along with ...more >