Many small businesses, agricultural enterprises, and women-led businesses in Papua New Guinea face barriers to bank loans including limited acceptable collateral, short credit histories, and lenders’ perceptions of risk.

To help address these barriers, the Credit Guarantee Corporation PNG (CGC PNG), with support from the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF), hosted the two-day MSME Finance Dialogue 2026. The event brought together banks, other financial institutions, regulators, MSME representatives and development partners to examine PNG’s credit guarantee landscape, exchange lessons from Asia-Pacific schemes and identify practical steps to expand responsible access to finance. Discussions focused on guarantee design, application and approval processes, portfolio monitoring and claims management, with the aim of informing a practical roadmap for  improvement.

“Financial inclusion requires institutions to understand customers, assess their businesses and offer appropriate services. Responsible access to finance and financial-system stability must advance together,” said the Assistant Governor, Financial System Development & Innovation Group of the Bank of Papua New Guinea, Mr. George Awap.

Mr. Awap, also emphasised that guarantees do not a remove borrowers’ responsibility to repay their loans. Lenders must continue to assess  carefully, monitor loans, and take responsibility for their lending decisions while retaining the share of credit risk specified in the guarantee agreement.

The Chairman of the CGC, Mr. Des Yaninen, thanked participants from the private and public sectors, and the development partners. He noted that their participation reflected a shared recognition of the importance MSME access to finance for the country’s economic development.

“For Papua New Guinea, their success can create employment, strengthen local supply chains, and broaden participation in the economy. Yet, the path from a sound business opportunity to an approved loan can be difficult. Credit guarantees have an important role to play. By sharing an agreed portion of credit risk, a guarantee can give a financial institution greater confidence to finance a viable enterprise that might otherwise struggle to secure a loan,” said Mr. Yaninen.

He encouraged participants to keep entrepreneurs at the centre of the discussions focusing on business owners seeking a fair opportunity to grow, create jobs, and contribute to Papua New Guinea’s economy.

UNDP Papua New Guinea Deputy Resident Representative, Mr. Aadil Mansoor, said recommendations coming out of this dialogue must be practical and grounded in PNG’s context.

“Across the region, UNDP is working with guarantee institutions to strengthen their governance, products, risk management, and partnerships with lenders, and to connect them with one another. Papua New Guinea is an important part of this regional effort, and we see CGC PNG as a key partner. What we learn here will benefit other Pacific and Asian institutions, and PNG will in turn benefit from their experience,” he added.