UNIDO, SEDF sign €3.04m SME support deal in Sindh

Ehtisham Ali

Karachi: The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the Sindh Enterprise Development Fund (SEDF) on Monday signed a €3.04 million agreement under the European Union-funded Poverty Alleviation and Inclusive Development Across Rural Sindh (PAIDAR) program, marking a major step toward institutionalizing small and medium enterprise (SME) support and expanding sustainable business development across rural Sindh.

The agreement introduces a new co-financing model aimed at formalizing PAIDAR’s SME Grant Window and mobilizing private investment alongside public funding. Under the arrangement, UNIDO and SEDF will each contribute €1.17 million, while a further €0.7 million is expected to be leveraged from private-sector equity.

The signing ceremony, held at a hotel in Karachi, also featured the awarding of SME Business Development Grants worth €1.89 million to 17 entrepreneurs from five targeted districts — Thatta, Badin, Sujawal, Larkana and Tharparkar. The supported enterprises span multiple sectors, including manufacturing, food processing, renewable energy and handicrafts.

Officials said the grant recipients were selected from a pool of more than 480 applicants, reflecting growing demand for structured enterprise support in the province. This marks the second cycle of SME development grants under the PAIDAR program.

Speaking at the ceremony, SEDF Chief Executive Officer Khizer Pervaiz said the partnership was designed to strengthen small and medium-sized businesses through structured business planning and targeted financial assistance, enabling sustainable growth and long-term economic impact.

Special Assistant to the Chief Minister of Sindh on Investment and Public-Private Partnership Projects, Syed Qasim Naveed Qamar, said the initiative reflected a maturing collaboration between SEDF and UNIDO under PAIDAR, built on sustained technical cooperation and shared development objectives.

Head of Cooperation at the European Union Delegation to Pakistan, Jeroen Willems, reaffirmed the EU’s commitment to inclusive and sustainable development, with a particular focus on strengthening rural economies in Sindh. He congratulated the selected SMEs, including women-led enterprises, and highlighted their potential contributions to job creation, resilience and long-term socioeconomic progress.

UNIDO Senior Technical Advisor and Program Manager Steffen Kaeser described PAIDAR as a key driver of inclusive and climate-resilient growth in Sindh. He said UNIDO provides end-to-end support to SMEs, ranging from business planning to grant financing and tailored technical assistance. To date, three grant cycles have attracted more than 1,000 applications and mobilized €9.41 million in investments, including €4.28 million in grants.

The event concluded with the formal signing of the grant agreement between PAIDAR and SEDF and the distribution of grant certificates to selected entrepreneurs, alongside commitments from stakeholders to accelerate enterprise development and infrastructure investment in Sindh.

Senior government officials, development partners and private-sector representatives attended the ceremony, including officials from the EU Delegation, UNIDO and the Sindh Investment Department.

PAIDAR is a five-year EU-funded program implemented by UNIDO in partnership with the Government of Sindh. It operates in Thatta, Sujawal, Badin, Tharparkar and Larkana, focusing on enterprise development, communal infrastructure and improved public service delivery to support inclusive and sustainable economic growth in rural areas.