Statement of EIB Vice-President Matthias Kollatz-Ahnen on the contribution of microfinance to the goals of the Europe 2020 Strategy, on the occasion of the conference "Microfinance in Europe". During that event, the European Commission and the EIB Group officially launched the European Progress Microfinance Facility, a fund targeting microfinance institutions and intended to benefit self-employed persons, microenterprises and microentrepreneurs starting or expanding their businesses as a way of countering unemployment and social exclusion in the EU in the context of the financial crisis.