The Annual Report presents the achievements of PKSF during the Financial Year (FY) 2003-2004. During the year PKSF expanded and diversified its credit programme for the rural poor in addition to its regular credit programme. In FY 2003-2004, with fund from the Asian Development Bank, PKSF launched the Second Participatory Livestock Development Project with special focus on ultra poor. PKSF finalized preparatory works to implement an IFAD supported project named Microfinance for Marginal and Small Farmers, with an aim to enable marginal and small farmers and agro-entrepreneurs (both men and women) to access and utilize viable microfinance services. The project will be operational in 2005 and expected to benefit about 2,10,000 small and marginal farmers.

In FY 2003-2004, PKSF disbursed Tk. 2,940.70 million to its Partner Organizations (POs). At the end of FY 2003-2004, cumulative loan disbursement by PKSF to POs stood at Tk. 17,181.30 million. The loan recovery rate has been maintained above 98%. At the end of the FY 2003-2004, cumulative number of borrowers was 51,04,940 (89% female and 11% male).

PKSF in collaboration with the Microcredit Summit Campaign organized the Asia Pacific Regional Microcredit Summit Meeting of Councils (APRMS) 2004 in Dhaka in February 2004. More than 1200 participants including practitioners, policy makers, academics and parliamentarians from 47 countries attended, which turned out to be the biggest ever regional meeting.

In FY 2003-2004, with the goal of helping increasing number of poor people to come out of their poverty situation, PKSF took an initiative to reduce the lending rate of POs to microcredit borrowers. PKSF contributed significantly to prepare a user-friendly regulatory framework for the microcredit sector of Bangladesh. During the year, the Technical Committee of Microfinance Research and Reference Unit (MRRU), headed by the Managing Director of PKSF, provided with several reporting formats and other inputs to help in preparing the regulatory framework

I express my earnest gratitude and appreciation to the Partner Organizations, PKSF officers and staff; and the beneficiaries whose committed efforts and services helped us to uphold our success. PKSF success would not have been possible without the significant support of the Government of Bangladesh, specially the Ministry of Finance and the donor agencies like the World Bank, ADB, IFAD and USAID and the members of the General Body and the Governing Body of PKSF. I thank all of them.

February 2005