The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, has provided financial support to thousands of micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), and millions of farmers across Asia and the Pacific affected by the Covid-19 pandemic.
About 17,500 MSMEs and corporates in the region are expected to be among the beneficiaries of IFC’s financial support, according to a press release issued on Wednesday.
The IFC supported 13 companies in the region — over 190,000 employees in the manufacturing, agriculture, services and energy sectors — with $554 million in Covid-19 related funding in the 2020-21 fiscal year.
To provide liquidity to businesses dependent on trade, the IFC also deployed $492 million in Covid-19 related trade finance lines in the region.
“The economic and social impact of Covid-19 will continue to exact a toll on people and businesses, leaving an indelible mark on the region’s economies and private sector” said Alfonso Garcia Mora, IFC’s newly appointed regional vice president for Asia and the Pacific.
“To address this, we are stepping up efforts to support companies strengthening also our support to the financial sector so that businesses and firms can build resilience on the road to recovery,” Alfonso added.
In Bangladesh, IFC also sanctioned a loan of up to $30 million to The City Bank Limited, to provide financing for SMEs and export-import companies affected by Covid-19.
“Small and medium enterprises provide more than 35% of employment in Bangladesh and contribute to a quarter of the country’s GDP,” said Wendy Werner, IFC country manager for Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal.
“Through IFC’s Covid-19 financing facility, we hope to help revitalize small businesses and also support our clients that have seen cash flows disrupted due to the worldwide crisis,” Wendy added.