Spurring growth: K-P to offer interest-free loans to entrepreneurs

PESHAWAR: The provincial government on Tuesday announced that it will initiate a start-up programme aimed at providing interest-free loans to university graduates who have innovative business ideas.

The loan package will start from a modest Rs500,000 and will range up to Rs3 million.

This was decided on Tuesday in a meeting between Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) Senior Minister for Tourism and Youth Affairs Atif Khan and Finance Minister Taimur Saleem Jhagra. The meeting had also been attended by Finance Secretary Shakeel Qadir, Tourism Secretary Shahid Zaman and officials from the Bank of Khyber.

In addition to this, a micro-financing programme will be launched for the youth without education. Under the micro-finance programme, cash injections of up to Rs400,000 will be given to help them stand on their own feet.

Atif said that specially-abled people, women and entrepreneurs associated with the tourism sector can also avail loans under this programme.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 19^th, 2018.