Can Credit Rating System Improve Access to Finance for Small Business in the Emerging Economies?
Ahmed Babatunde Popoola Credit Reference Company 26, McCarthy Street Lagos, Nigeria Tel. +234 803 302 4307 Email: abpopoola@yahoo.com; t.popoola@creditreferencenigeria.com ABSTRACT An interesting scenario playing out today in the world’s economic landscape is the realisation that the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) are very strategic in the socio-economic development of the world especially in terms of their significant contributions to economic growth and overcoming the social challenges of poverty and unemployment. They have long been identified as engines of economic growth and development. However, as strategic as they are especially for the emerging economies, there are very many challenges inhibiting their ability to take that pride of place as the engine of economic transformation and social upliftment. The most daunting, visible and much talked-about is access to finance. As a result, their financing is regarded as “financing of development” and has been the basis f
