RFF Management Bodies are as follows:
- The Program Steering Committee (PSC), which
- Approves the RFF Investment Guideline, any amendment and/or addition therein that is subject to agreement with the Ministry of Finance of Armenia and no objection by IFAD and/or other relevant donors; develops and oversees the overall operational policy of RFF; makes decisions on refinancing terms and conditions that are subject to agreement with the Ministry of Finance of Armenia and no objection by IFAD and/or other relevant donors; approves RFF’s annual work plan-budget.
- Approves RFF’s annual reports and financial statements.
- The Credit Committee (CC), which
- Approves or declines the refinancing applications by PFIs in accordance with the Investment Guideline;
- Makes decisions based on the compatibility with the terms and conditions of the Investment Guideline for the sub-loans / leasing. The membership of the PSC and the CC is defined in the financial agreements.
- Decisions of the CC are made with clear majority of votes of members present at the meeting. In case of equality of votes, the vote of the CC Chairperson is decisive. The CC meeting is considered competent, if at least 50 percent of members are attending. The CC has the right to decline the application, if it does not conform to the eligibility criteria set forth in the RFF Investment Guideline. At present, the RFF continues its operations within the ongoing programs of the RAED PIU.
The Structure, Goal, Objectives and Strategy of the RFF PIU SA
The Rural Finance Facility – RFF was established under the Ministry of Finance of Armenia in 2005 as per the decree of the Government of Armenia. The goal of RFF is intensification of agricultural activities by making respective financial products accessible to the rural small and medium enterprises at the expense of the funds provided by IFAD (nearly USD 8.9 million) and WB (nearly USD 5.2 million). The funds are provided to prequalified banks and other eligible financial institutions for extending medium and long term credits.
The duration of credits subject to refinancing is 1-7 years; max credit amount for start-up is set at USD 150.000, max grace period is 18 months.
Rural Crediting and Subsidizing
The PIU has started the payment of subsidized amounts for extended credits since April 2011. Up to 30.09.2013, the payment constituted AMD 1 billion 366 million. The overall number of credits extended to the rural households is 57.865. Totally provided credits amount to AMD 49 billion 405 million.
MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE ACCOUNT - ARMENIA WATER TO MARKET COMPONENT
On 16 October 2007 the Rural Finance Facility PIU SA signed an implementing entity agreement with the Millennium Challenges Fund Armenia SNCO for implementing the Water to Market loan program and supporting its monitoring. The objective of the program is to provide the “Water to Market” component’s rural funds for supporting high value agro-production and efficient application of new technologies.
The RFF PIU SA undertakes multistage monitoring within the “Water to Market” Credit Facility.
