Opportunity Information: Apply for SFOP0005162
Supporting Small and Medium Enterprises' Access to Finance in Tunisia is a U.S. Department of State funding opportunity focused on improving how micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs and SMEs) in Tunisia can obtain financing, especially in a market where bank credit tends to flow mainly to well-established firms with strong collateral. The opportunity recognizes that Tunisia has made notable reforms over the past decade, including a microfinance law introduced in 2011 that opened the sector to new players, and the Start-Up Act passed in 2018 that built additional momentum for entrepreneurship and business growth. Even with these steps forward, the grant is grounded in the reality that many smaller or younger companies still struggle to access capital on reasonable terms, which remains a major constraint on the overall business environment.
The problem the program is responding to is largely structural. Tunisia has a relatively advanced SME policy framework compared with other economies in North Africa and the Levant, and it has institutions and mechanisms meant to support enterprise creation and expansion. However, private equity and venture capital are described as underdeveloped, limiting non-bank options for growth capital and innovation financing. On the bank side, lending represents less than ten percent of the broader financial sector, yet it is becoming more important for SMEs seeking external funding for fixed asset investment. The opportunity highlights findings from a 2015 European Investment Bank report indicating that banks tend to serve only a narrow segment of SMEs that can pledge substantial collateral, while firms with limited equity and fewer tangible assets are frequently excluded. It also notes that banks' liquidity conditions can reinforce conservative lending behavior, pushing credit toward clients viewed as less risky and toward deals backed by real assets as security.
In practical terms, the grant is aimed at supporting efforts that can expand and improve SME access to finance within this context. While the notice does not spell out a detailed list of required activities in the provided excerpt, the framing makes clear that proposals are expected to address barriers such as collateral constraints, risk aversion in bank lending, and the lack of developed alternative finance channels. The emphasis is on strengthening the enabling environment and mechanisms that help SMEs obtain financing for investment and growth, rather than treating access to finance as a purely firm-level issue.
Administratively, this is a discretionary award issued as a cooperative agreement, meaning the government typically anticipates a more hands-on partnership role with the award recipient than under a standard grant. The funding opportunity number is SFOP0005162, listed under CFDA 19.600. The anticipated award ceiling is USD 1,200,000, with one expected award. Eligible applicants are broad and include public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status, and for-profit organizations (other than small businesses), along with additional entities as described in the full eligibility clarification. The opportunity was created on June 8, 2018, with an original closing date of July 19, 2018, indicating it was a time-bound competition tied to that cycle.
Overall, the opportunity is best understood as a targeted intervention meant to build on Tunisia's reform trajectory while confronting a persistent financing gap: many SMEs cannot meet traditional collateral requirements, alternative investment markets are thin, and bank incentives often favor low-risk, asset-backed lending. The grant is positioned to support work that helps shift those dynamics so that a wider range of SMEs can access the capital needed to invest, expand, and contribute more fully to employment and economic growth.Apply for SFOP0005162
- The Department of State, Assistance Coordination in the other (see text field entitled explanation of other category of funding activity for clarification) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Supporting Small and Medium Enterprises' Access to Finance in Tunisia" and is now available to receive applicants.
- Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 19.600.
- This funding opportunity was created on Jun 08, 2018.
- Applicants must submit their applications by Jul 19, 2018. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
- Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,200,000.00 in funding.
- The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
- Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).
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