The multilateral European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is expanding its Youth in Business program, an initiative aimed at boosting entrepreneurship and reducing unemployment among people aged 35 and younger. Youth in Business is already operational in Egypt, Morocco and southeastern Europe. It is now expanding to Central Asia with a budget equivalent to USD 218 million for on-lending plus USD 33 million for training, advisory services and the creation of networking opportunities. EBRD plans to implement the expansion via 20 partner banks, including Arnur Credit of Kazakhstan, Hamkorbank of Uzbekistan, Shinhan Bank Kazakhstan and Transcapital of Mongolia. Based in the UK, EBRD is owned by 71 shareholder governments, the EU and the European Investment Bank; and it reports total assets of USD 78 billion.
Author: Yuchen Jin
