MEDSt@rts, is a project that aims to promote a Mediterranean inclusive finance network in order to support the creation of business.
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Sfax organized the Second Cross-Border Forum of Microfinance on Thursday, March 03, 2022.
Sfax, Tunisia. Within the framework of MEDSt@rts cooperation project initiated by the European Union program ENI CBC MED 2014-2020, which it financed with 2,5 million (90% of its total budget which is 28 million Euros), the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Sfax has just organized the 2nd Cross-border Microfinance Forum, on Thursday March 03, 2022.
The event which was held in the form of face to face meetings at the Borj Dhiafa hotel in Sfax in presence of officials from the Chamber, as well as MEDSt@rts partners, beneficiaries and actors. It represented an opportunity to reveal the first results of the mid-term project.
During her opening speech, the General Director of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Sfax, Ikram Makni, reminded that the objective of the MEDSt@rts project is to support Microfinance to facilitate the launch of new Mediterranean startups. She added that the project, which has reached an advanced stage, aims to create 75 new innovative startups, 15 in each concerned.country
Mrs Alessandra Feola for the Fondazione di Sardegna (Italy), leader of the MEDSt@rts project, represented the other partners of this project which are respectively: the SFIRS (Italy), the Chamber of Italo-Arab Cooperation (Italy), the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Sfax (Tunisia), the Chamber of Commerce of ACHAIA (Greece), the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of Sidon and South Lebanon (Lebanon) and LEADERS International (Palestine). She indicated that the project aims to support young unbankable promoters in the five countries concerned, namely Tunisia, Italy, Palestine, Lebanon and Greece to launch their businesses.
The inaugural session also included the intervention of Mr. Fabrizio Paloni (coordinator of the Joint Technical Secretariat of the ENI CBC Med Program 2014-2020) and Mrs. Samira Rafrafi, national contact of the Program in Tunisia, who highlighted the importance of this project to support young people in the creation of their businesses.

The second session was dedicated to the presentation of the results of the first Cross-Border Microfinance Forum.
Interventions by Mrs. Rasha Hasoush from the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of Sidon and South Lebanon (Lebanon), Mrs. Sally Mushrara from LEADERS International (Palestine) and Mr. Riccardo Contu for the Chamber of Italian-Arab cooperation, made it possible to compare the first results obtained in each country and to participate in the development of a common strategy for a Mediterranean microfinance program, based on instruments and support services for new and innovative businesses.

The first panel addressed the theme of Digital Transformation in Microfinance, while the second one discussed the theme of Crowdfunding.
The debates that followed were an opportunity to disclose the testimonies of some beneficiaries of the project among the nine young Tunisians who have so far benefited from a thousand Euro funding.
The latter shared their experiences on the obstacles they had to face in order to obtain funding for their project due to the fact that they could not obtain a bank loan and that it was impossible for them to raise the necessary sums to start it.
The speakers welcomed the initiative of the MEDSt@rts project, which has made it possible to develop an innovative support model to facilitate access to financing for people who cannot obtain a bank loan.

For more information
Contact Mrs, Ikram Makni
E-mail: ikram.makni@ccis.org.tn – Phone : 00 216 28 222 910
Follow MEDSt@rts: Facebook, YouTube, Instagram, Twitter
This publication was created with the financial assistance of the European Union under the ENI CBC Mediterranean Sea Basin Programme. The content of this document is the sole responsibility of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Sfax and can in no way be considered as a reflection on the position of the European Union or the management structures of the Programme.