The Hindu Business Line : Exim Bank sets up Rs 1-cr fund to tap rural technology

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Exim Bank sets up Rs 1-cr fund to tap rural technology

“The bank’s efforts are not only to make rural products visible in the global market, but also to find alternative channels through partnership arrangements with corporates.”

Our Bureau

Chennai, Dec. 27 Export-Import Bank of India has set up a Rs 1-crore fund to identify and enhance the export worthiness of rural technologies in the country. “Having facilitated small and medium enterprises to stage an entry into discerning markets in developed countries through the Export Marketing Fund of World Bank, it was felt that the Exim Bank could support exports from rural India, by leveraging its overseas network,” said the bank’s Chairman and Managing Director, Mr T.C. Venkat Subramanian.

He was in Chennai to inaugurate a ‘vocational training-cum-production facility for rural poor’ at Kuthambakkam village, in the outskirts of the city. Exim Bank has supported the Trust for Village Self-Governance in the setting up of the training facility.

Trust for Village Self-Governance is an NGO founded by Mr R. Elango to establish rural technology resource centres to eradicate poverty and to conduct village self-sufficiency programmes through farming, cattle rearing, dairy farming, village industries using self help groups.

Tie-up with ngos

According to Mr Venkat Subramanian, Exim Bank has decided to establish working partnership with leading NGOs across the country. The bank’s efforts are in the direction of not only making rural products visible in the global market, but also to find alternative channels through partnership arrangements with corporates, he said. For example, ITC Ltd has mandated Exim Bank to market its ‘Mangaldeep’ agarbattis in select overseas markets leveraging the bank’s network.

The bank is also planning to extend financial assistance to M. Rm Rm Cultural Foundation (in Chennai) and sign a memorandum of co-operation for setting up a natural dyeing unit at Chettinad. “We also intend to document the process know-how involved in making of handmade ‘athangudi’ flooring tiles and also explore possibilities of identifying markets in African countries,” he said.

Repco Bank plans

For its part, Repco Bank is also planning to enhance its micro-credit portfolio to Rs 100 crore by March 2009.

According to Mr R. Varadarajan, Executive Director, Repco Bank, it has so far extended Rs 39-crore credit through 5,000 NGOs benefiting over 60,000 families across Tamil Nadu. “We have so far established five vocational training centres in Tamil Nadu in tie-up with Exim Bank,” he said.