Annual Report for 2004 - acf_2004.pdf

Annual Report for 2005 - acf_2005.pdf [ b] (cêà÷èâàíèé: 11)

ACF is a micro-credit organization with a difference, having carved a niche for itself in small business development. Our philosophy is simple – by empowering the entrepreneur, we help him serve the community through creating jobs and providing services, while setting him on a path to self-sufficiency.

In addition to expertise, ACF has a wide network, being a member of several distinguished professional and small business associations, both local and international, including the Microfinance Center for Eastern Europe and NIS, the American Chamber of Commerce in Kazakhstan, the Association of Financiers of Kazakhstan, and the Forum of Entrepreneurs of Kazakhstan.

Investors

ACF was founded by and continues to enjoy the support of Mercy Corps. Our partners include prominent local banks like Demir Kazakhstan and international lenders such as Deutschebank and Oikocredit. Our business practices and auditing standards conform to worldwide requirements. In 2005, ACF was awarded the Transparency Award by CGAP. Our financial reports are audited by Deloitte. ACF is a growing organization with a vision for the future.

Donors

ACF has a successful track record working with international organizations. In 1998 ACF was a Eurasia Foundation grant recipient for building institutional capacity, and received a $250,000 USAID grant in 2002 for lending capital for its mortgage lending program. ACF also has experience of working with private enterprises such Citibank, the IFC as well as individuals, such as member of European Parliament Struan Stevenson.

ACF seeks partners who can support it in its mission to empower the entrepreneur. You could contribute by making a grant, or supporting any of our strategic philanthropy initiatives. ACF can further work with you to develop any existing ideas you may have about supporting small enterprises. 

3.2              Annual Report PDF 2002-2005

3.3              Audited Financial Statements 2002-2006

3.4              CAMEL Rating From ACCION

Building Businesses

2007

Igor Kleimenov is a 45-year old entrepreneur based in Almaty. Having started off as a trader in the porcelain market, Igor switched to producing plastic windows for residential and business buildings, a sound business decision given the rapid expansion of construction work in the city over the past decade. Igor’s success story is remarkable. When he started off in the late 1990s, his assets were barely worth $200. In 2006, his company was worth almost $59,000.

“I knew that production required high level of capitalization and I decided to start saving money from my trade business,” says Igor. In October 2000, he turned to ACF for his first loan, worth $5,000, which he used for buying equipment for production. Six more loans followed over the next few years, with the biggest one being $23,000. Igor was gradually able to build up his business by investing in more equipment and expanding production. Having saved up over $20,000 by 2005 enabled Igor to enter into a partnership with a brokerage firm. The brokerage company collected orders for plastic windows and placed orders with production companies. For Igor, this partnership could not have come at a better time. Soaring real estate prices and a construction boom in Almaty resulted in brisk business for Igor, his company’s equity increasing by 160% within a few years. To accommodate rapidly growing demand, Igor needed to hire more employees and acquire his own workshop, both of which he successfully accomplished as a result of his partnership with ACF. After receiving ACF loans, Igor was able to almost double the number of employees from eight to the present fifteen. Profits soared to $28,600 in 2006.

ACF is more than just a small business lender – it values its relationships with its clients and offers business advisory services and development assistance. Not only did ACF financially enable Igor move towards his long-term goal of expanding his business, its trained personnel were also able to assist him in formulating a business development strategy.

Serving the Local Community

2007

Said Dudaev is a dentist in Almaty, Kazakhstan and one of the ACF’s oldest clients.  Thirty years ago, Said graduated from the Almaty Medical Institute with a diploma in dentistry and stepped into the family business started by his father sixty years ago.  According to the Guinness Book of Records, Dudaev’s family is one of the biggest families of dentists in the country, boasting twenty family members to have joined the profession.

Said’s father served as a dentist in a state clinic during the Soviet period and practiced privately in his house after work.  Private medical service was prohibited then, but Said’s father was a kindhearted person.  “He could not say no to people who were coming to him with pain and hope,” recalls Said.   In Kazakhstan, dentistry occupied a special position, accessible only to the wealthy, even during the Soviet era when medical care was free for all.  Dudaev’s house was located in an impoverished district of Almaty, Malaya Stanitsa. Set up by the Russian Empire as an army fort in 19^th century, this district was later chosen as a resettlement location for those who were forcibly moved from other parts of the Soviet Union during the Second World War.  Dudaev’s family was moved from the Caucasus. 

When Said was thinking about starting his own practice after perestroika, he decided to stay in the same neighborhood.  “Many people suggested that I set up my clinic in a rich neighborhood, but I wanted to make my own contribution to the Dudaev family name.  I could not leave this locality without the services that it had had for years”, says Said. Said’s private clinic, “Dudaev & Co,” is located at his house and employs nine specialists; four of them doctors with substantial experience in state and private clinics.  His wife Roza helps with the accounting and administration work at the clinic. There are many families who remain loyal clients to the family practice. “I hope to see my son, who is a dentistry student right now, serving the same families in the future,” says Said. “And I hope the partnership with ACF continues with him as well. I have built up a good network with the local community, city entrepreneurs and financial institutions. I want him to maintain these relationships; this is a great legacy for him.”    

ACF has been a reliable financial partner for Said. “He has built up an incredible nine-year credit history with ACF” says Zhanna Zhakupova, Said’s first loan officer and now ACF’s Executive Director. “We are happy to help him any time he needs money” she adds.  With ACF loans, Said has updated his equipment, renovated the clinic and bought a specially equipped car to provide door-to-door services to people who could not come to the clinic. Said’s home clinic was small and could not accommodate many people, prompting him to take out an ACF loan for the renovation of another, bigger clinic also located at Malaya Stanitsa. This state-owned clinic was closed during perestroika, leaving the community without medical services.  After a long negotiation, Said concluded a ten-year lease agreement with the local municipality to reopen the clinic.  ACF provided a three-year loan for partial renovation of this building, and people now have access to dentist, massage, hirudotherapy and X-ray services. After the renovation of the entire building is complete, Said wants to increase the variety of medical services that people can receive there, and employ six more people.  ACF plans to help him realize his dreams.  After all, community development is the core of the businesses of both ACF and its clients.                

ACF hopes to establish a regional SME Resource Center aimed at promoting the development of entrepreneurship in select regions through better access to useful high quality information about best practice in small business development, new technologies, legal and tax information, financial services and available training. In order to successfully create the SME Resource Centers in Karaganda, Semei and Almaty Oblast, ACF plans to establish and develop an Enterprise Development Resource Center (EDRC) and build capacity of SMEs through the establishment of partnerships with companies, local government, associations, investors and universities.

This is an initiative under development, and ACF is actively seeking support for its implementation.

As a part of its comprehensive strategic philanthropy program, ACF funds a number of initiatives, geared towards rural youth.  

Business Internship Program

This program engages teenagers from rural areas in traineeship experiences that emphasize the “learning by doing” philosophy.  Every year the group of teenagers participates in monthly business internships at the businesses of ACF borrowers. ACF provides teenagers with lunch and transportation allowances and also organizes pre-internship “on job safety” course.      

Scholarship Program

         This program aims to improve access to education in rural areas by providing financial support to rural teenagers to get vocational education.  ACF has designed an annual competition for its scholarships.  The scholarship covers tuition fees, textbooks as well as housing at select colleges.

Leisure Activity Program

In addition, ACF organizes a number of leisure activities for rural youth in an effort to engage them creatively. For example, ecological actions, sport competitions, etc.

            ACF’s Business Information Service (BIS) project provides high quality and practical information to entrepreneurs and small business owners. SMEs have access to a range of information about economic techniques, effective business management practices, business networks, useful up-to-date information, changes in legislation, taxation and other legal requirements to small business owners.  ACF has successfully implemented BIS in Almaty, Almaty oblast and Semei and has recently started in Karaganda region. 

            The BIS project aims to provide detailed and up-to-date information about changes in regulatory environment so that entrepreneurs can bring their business processes to conformity with current standards and earn more about their rights and duties with the purpose of more active participation in civil society development.

     Resources

Each ACF office has an informational rack where any visitor can get free information brochures and leaflets concerning the following topics:

• Running a business (tips on management, marketing, accounting, personnel policy, etc.)
• Legislation and taxation
• Public health and sanitary norms for businesses
• Business ethics
• Real estate market overview
• Information about new products of ACF 

In additions, ACF’s trained staff welcomes one-to-one consultations on loans, business development and information.