THE public and private sectors have to join forces to adopt new ways to streamline the accessibility of finance to upcoming entrepreneurs, Minister of Trade and Industry Immanuel Ngatjizeko has said.

The Minister said although he was aware that there was need for a borrower to offer security when getting a loan, it was high time financial institutions came up with less rigid requirements and innovative solutions to help struggling and upcoming small businesspeople.

Ngatjizeko, who led the Namibian delegation to the Agoa summit held in Accra, Ghana last week, said one of the issues discussed at the event was the acknowledgement that there was adequate finance globally, but the difficulties lay in making such funds available to those who need them.

"This problem seems to be affecting all people across the world.

It is therefore critical that both the public and private sectors align ourselves with the best practice internationally, in order to remain true to the needs of our people," he said.

The Minister made these remarks at the official launch of the First National Bank SME Finance Business Unit in Windhoek on Monday.

Since its establishment last year, the SME Business Unit has provided financial support to over 130 small and medium-sized enterprises - with a total contribution of N$800 000 in the first year.

Ngatjizeko acknowledged and commended the work being done by other commercial banks to assist emerging businesspeople, but added that more could still be done in financing this particular sector.

"This is not the first SME finance business unit being established by our financial institutions, I am aware of similar initiatives at other banks.

Despite developments, my Ministry continues to be approached by SME operators who are still complaining about the fact that they cannot access affordable finance," he said.

The Minister challenged the financial sector to develop new products and schemes which would allow foreign investors to raise capital in the local market to boost funding for SME projects.

Ngatjizeko said joint venture partnerships were also vital to the development of the SME sector as they aided in skills development and creating more jobs - subsequently boosting the economy.

"In our quest to increase value addition in the economy and attract further foreign direct investment, we are urging the SME sector to play a more meaningful role," he said.

The FNB SME Finance Business Unit came into being with the signing of a memorandum of understanding between the commercial bank and the German development services agency (DED) in February 2006.

Under the memorandum both parties agreed to support the SME sector through training and mentorship programmes on a grant support basis.

A local consultancy organisation, SMEs Compete, was contracted by FNB in April 2006 to implement the programme together with DED.