About DEG
Our business is developing.
DEG, member of KfW Bankengruppe (KfW banking group), finances investments of private companies in developing and transition countries. As one of Europe's largest development finance institutions, it promotes private business structures to contribute to sustainable growth and improved living conditions.
Founded 1962, based on an idea of the first German Minister for Development Aid, Walter Scheel, and the then state premier of Schleswig-Holstein, Kai-Uwe von Hassel, DEG’s intention is to raise people's living standards in our partner countries for nearly 50 years. We do this by supporting promising entrepreneurial initiative. For this purpose, we almost exclusively use own resources rather than public budget funds.
Entrepreneurial development cooperation is an important part of development policy: successful, long-term viable private enterprises generate economic growth in the partner countries. They create jobs and income, contribute to improving the countries' foreign exchange balance by producing competitive products, contribute to government revenues by their tax payments and increase national value added by processing local resources.
DEG fulfils its role as a development finance institution for the private sector in two ways: it is the reliable finance partner for enterprises that undertake investments. At the same time DEG focuses particular attention on these investments producing positive effects in the developing countries. DEG thus contributes to the Millennium Development Goals, which are a joint commitment of industrial and developing countries to tackle poverty in a sustainable manner.
