Nirdham Utthan Bank—Nepal : Project Results and Lessons

The objective of AgriFin’s project with Nirdhan Utthan Bank Ltd (NUBL) was to strengthen the bank’s capacity to serve agricultural clients in Nepal. NUBL is a regulated microfinance bank, primarily offering group loans with over 87,000 clients. The project supported the establishment of a new agricultural finance unit; the development of new agricultural loan products; training of agricultural lending staff; and improvements of the bank’s overall internal processes which relate to agricultural lending. This note highlights the initial results and key lessons emerging from the project which may be useful for financial institutions undergoing similar institutional changes.