The Economic and Social Fund for Development (ESFD) is funded by the European Union and the Government of Lebanon (Council for Development and Reconstruction CDR) as a permanent entity whose mission is to alleviate poverty and mitigate the social impact of economic transition on marginalized and disadvantaged groups in Lebanon.

In order to achieve its mission, the ESFD reaches out to the underprivileged strata of the population through two units, Job Creation and Community Development.
The Job Creation unit aims at creating job opportunities through the provision of loans to Small and Medium Enterprises SMEs through partner commercial banks.
The Community Development unit aims at improving conditions in deprived communities by ensuring access to basic social services.