Credit Guarantee Schemes for Small and Medium Enterprises

This paper provides information on a variety of credit guarantee schemes in 27 developed and developing countries. Some of the schemes have been in operation for 40 to 50 years, while others have been introduced only in the past few years.

The difficulties were encountered in obtaining reliable data on the experience of some of the schemes, particularly the more recent ones, so, regrettably, there are some gaps in the completeness of the data and the periods covered. While the authors make no claim to completeness, it is believed that the information given in the paper will enable the reader to understand the essential elements, scope, and variety of such schemes, and the problems they face in their operations.

The first part of the paper is devoted to a comprehensive review of the issues involved in the design and implementation of credit guarantee schemes, based on the experience accumulated in the countries where such schemes have operated.

The second part describes various credit guarantee schemes which already exist in developing countries.

[Authors' abstract]