The Government says that the draft of the Micro Credit Bill, which aims to create a regulatory authority for the micro finance sector, is at an advanced stage.

Members of the Jamaica Micro Financing Association (JaMFA ) will be focusing heavily on the so long delayed Bill at their fifth bi-annual Microfinance Sector Leadership Forum tomorrow at Hotel Four Seasons, Ruthven Road in Kingston.

Minister of Finance and the Public Service Audley Shaw will be the guest speaker at the conference, which is being held under the theme ‘The National Agenda — The Role of the Microfinance Sector’. He is expected to address several important issues related to increasing growth and sustainable development in the Jamaican economy, and the expansion and contribution of the microfinance sector to the process.

The forum will take the form of a breakfast meeting, with discussions aimed at facilitating an understanding of the Government’s policy framework for supporting the microfinance/micro, small and medium-sized enterprises sectors MFS/MSMES).

The JaMFA’s Microfinance Sector Leadership Forum is becoming an increasingly powerful brand, serving as the premier knowledge-sharing event for the MFs and the MSMEs sectors, the association said. It also provides an opportunity to engage in meaningful dialogue and valuable networking.

Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries Karl Samuda said that the legislation would assist in the registration and regulation of micro credit lending companies that provide financing to the micro, small and medium-sized enterprise sector.