PM orders faster SME loan access, approves three-tier governance structure to double business financing by 2028

ISLAMABAD, Jul 28 (APP):Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday directed the relevant authorities to expedite SME loan access and approved a three-tier governance structure to double business financing by 2028.

The prime minister chaired a high-level review meeting here to expand access to finance for the business community, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs), and directed banks to speed up lending to the sector, a Prime Minister’s Office news release said.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said easy access to credit for the business sector forms the foundation of sustainable economic growth. He noted that improved financing would not only boost investment and production but also generate employment opportunities and help increase exports.

The prime minister directed that access to loans for the business community, especially small and medium-sized enterprises, be expedited without delay.

He also announced that the bank extending the highest volume of credit to the business sector, particularly SMEs, would be given a special award every year.

To institutionalize the push for improved access to finance, the prime minister approved a three-tier governance structure. He announced that he would personally head the top-tier committee overseeing the provision of financial facilities. Below that, a steering committee tasked with expanding Access to Finance (A2F) will be led by the finance minister, with the governor of the State Bank of Pakistan serving as co-chairman. Separate sector-specific sub-committees will also be established for SME, agriculture, IT, renewable energy, and housing finance.

The officials briefing the meeting said SME financing by banks, currently standing at Rs 1.15 trillion as of June 2026, is targeted to be raised to Rs 2 trillion by June 2028. The number of SME borrowers is likewise set to increase from the current 324,000 to 775,000 over the same period. The share of SME financing in overall bank lending is targeted to rise from 9.9 percent to 13 percent by June 2028.

They added that to monitor progress and encourage banks to meet these targets, a scoring system will be introduced to evaluate bank performance on SME and broader business lending.

The meeting was attended by Federal Ministers Ahad Khan Cheema and Muhammad Aurangzeb, Minister of State Bilal Azhar Kayani, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Haroon Akhtar, State Bank of Pakistan Governor Jameel Ahmad, Pakistan Banks’ Association Chairman Zafar Masud, and other senior government officials.