Ahmet Ismaili: Signing of the re-guarantee agreement with the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency Greeting speech by Mr Ahmet Ismaili, Governor of the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo, at the confernece "Signing of the Re-guarantee Agreement with the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency", organised by the Kosovo Credit Guarantee Fund and SIDA, Pristina, 7 December 2023. *** Dear Mr. Azemi, Chairman of the KCGF Board Dear Mr. Westerlund, Ambassador of Sweden to Kosovo Dear Ms. Hajdari, Minister of MIET Dear Mr. Berisha, Managing Director at the KCG Dear participants, I am pleased to participate in this special event of signing the Renewal Agreement of the Guarantee Facility between the Kosovo Credit Guarantee Fund and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) that has at its centre the opportunities that pave the way for providing the most favourable conditions for reguaranteed loans from KCGF windows, such as the Women in Business Window, Export Support Window and Grow Window for green investment that enhance energy efficiency and generate energy from renewable resources. Commercial banks and other lending institutions such as institutions regulated and supervised by the Central Bank of the Republic of Kosovo play an important role in providing lending to different sectors of the country's economy and, at the same time, affecting economic development through consumption, investment and net exports. The Kosovo Credit Guarantee Fund, as an independent and developmental legal entity, through guaranteeing the credit portfolio of financial institutions, has historically contributed to increasing access to finance for SMEs, supporting entrepreneurship, supporting domestic production and services, which create added value, create new jobs and support overall economic development. The continued growth of the KCGF capital, combined with re-guarantee schemes, including today's re-guarantee agreement between the KCGF and the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, affects the expansion of finance access, increase of competition, reduction of financing gap with competitive conditions, maintenance of the level of non-performing loans and financial stability that are also in accordance with the CBK strategy and mandate. The CBK is committed to supporting any legal and regulatory initiative by the KCGF in the function of expanding membership of (lending) microfinance institutions, reviewing 1/2 BIS - Central bankers' speeches deadlines to become part of the KCGF for new banking institutions as well as the possibility for special guarantee schemes of the KCGF for banks to be able to finance microfinance institutions. The CBK considers the KCGF as a very important mechanism to maintain and further advance the objective of a stable financial system, with an impact on the support of the economy. Therefore, cooperation will also be strengthened in the interest of implementing these objectives. Allow me to thank the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) represented by the Swedish Embassy in Kosovo for the continued support given to the KCGF in guaranteeing loans in order to increase lending in various sectors of economy and at affordable costs. Thank you! 2/2 BIS - Central bankers' speeches