THE quality of mercy and the need to share bountiful resources with the

less fortunate have propelled the vision of the late Abdool Gafoor into predisposing his son and head of the Gafoor empire, Sattaur Gafoor,  into establishing the Small Business Develoment Finance (SBDF), which was registered on 22nd October 2002 and which became operational almost immediately. The direction of the Trust, which was originally funded solely by the Gafsons conglomerate, is to provide guidance and financial support to enable self-motivated persons, who have no access to assistance or counsel, to initiate projects that can catalyze into viable and self-perpetuating enterprises.
Former President Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo’s commitment to the late Dr. Cheddi Jagan’s ideal of development with a human face, has factored greatly into solid governmental support, which has contributed immensely to the growth of the SBDF into a significant player in the micro-financing arena.
The private sector’s interventions and assistance have also been instrumental in the evolving dynamism of the SBDF, which has re-energised and re-configured the micro and small enterprise sector of Guyana and transformed  micro-entrepreneurs into sustainable producers and suppliers in the global marketplace, with the ability to withstand the fluctuations of world market forces and still retain stability within the international investment paradigm.
Partnering with the SBDF in the realisation of its vision and its Mission Statement: “To strengthen the economic base of micro and small-scale sector entrepreneurs in Guyana through increased access to lending, technical support and non-traditional financial facilities, so that small enterprises could position themselves to be competitive and to take advantage of their size to participate in the world markets in an era of intense global competition,” is the Republic Bank, which has provided crucial financial and other support since the inception of this initiative
However, the challenge to sustain the programme and achieve set goals as per Gafson’s commitments and self-appointed mandate has been an increasingly critical dimension to the policies of the SBDF, so an approach was made to the International Financial Fund (IFC) which, while initially supportive of the principles driving the SBDF, gave no indication whether that support would solidify into fiscal provisions.
But SBDF factors in the general IFC strategy in the Caribbean, which focuses on providing support for the financial sector and capital market development, while stimulating the growth of local companies and improving their competitiveness, with promoting private sector participation in infrastructure being an additional priority. IFC also addresses the needs of smaller economies through direct and regional investments, as well as through advisory services and trade finance facilities for local banks.
By the imperatives of its mandate, SBDF meets the IFC’s criteria for assistance, and the financing body agreed to provide an initial USD300,000 loan, simultaneously with advisory services, to help the SBDF to continue  extending loans to low-income individuals desirous of entering the entrepreneurial arena, albeit in a very small way initially, and to expand access to finance for local small businesses operating nationwide.
This loan facilitated the Trust in developing and implementing a growth strategy aimed at formalising its operations and transforming itself from a Non-Governmental Organisation into a fully-regulated financial intermediary.
The accompanying component of this agreement, although projected to be on a cost-sharing basis, will impact on SBDF initiatives in myriad ways, not least in preparing the SBDF for complex reporting requirements, as well as improved portfolio quality and monitoring, which will in turn facilitate more effective and extensive outreach and credit support services to recipients.
Call it charity, seva, zakaat, by whatever name the quality of mercy that one family has interjected into the human family across every divide has brought, and continues to bring light into the lives of innumerable persons in many ways, with the SBDF being merely one component in developing the human condition with a human face.