The senior director and deputy chief ratings officer at Crisil said the sector's collection efficiency has stalled at 90 to 94 percent over the past few months, compared with the pre-pandemic level of 98 to 99 percent.

The scheme is designed to support businesses including micro, small and medium enterprises, and large firms to enhance their access to formal loans.

COVID-19 has dramatically increased reliance on real-time and digital payments, leading to a 41 percent surge in real-time payment transactions from 2019 to 2020.

This latest move by Mastercard will help 90 plus MFIs and 300,000 small businesses across Europe and Central Asia sail through the COVID-led financial turmoil.

The awards support innovative COVID-19 response and recovery efforts related to savings groups, in the areas of women’s livelihoods, voice and leadership, violence against women, digital savings groups and more.

The government previously allocated NGN 2.3 trillion (USD 6 billion) to pandemic relief efforts, including microfinance and other programs.

The Recovery and Advancement of Informal Sector Employment project will help about 175,000 poor urban youths and low-income microentrepreneurs enhance employability and productivity.

The National Cash Transfer Company piloted the Door to Door Payment method as a response to the new challenging context and a preventive measure for coronavirus-related risks.

The loan aims to help the bank increase lending for climate-friendly projects and to smaller businesses, especially those owned by women.

The government views the accelerated transition to a digital society and economy as vital to economic recovery following the COVID-19 pandemic.