Last Sunday I took part, representing the Irada Foundation, in a panel moderated by HaDeel Frman at the launch of a guide on access to finance for small and medium enterprises in Iraq.
The guide is a joint project between the European Commission, GIZ Iraq, the Central Bank of Iraq, and the Private Banks Association — an effort to make the routes to funding clearer for the small and medium businesses that form the backbone of Iraq's private sector.
Access to finance remains one of the hardest barriers for Iraqi founders and SMEs, and bringing the regulator, the banks, and international partners to the same table to document those pathways is an important step toward closing that gap.