The OPEC Fund approves $135mfinancing for El Salvador, Mozambique and Pakistan
The OPEC Fund for International Development has approved public sector loans of $35 million and $50 million to support COVID-19 response efforts in El Salvador and Pakistan, respectively.
A $50 million private sector loan was also approved to help boost energy access in Mozambique. All loans were approved via the OPEC Fund’s fast-track process, adopted to ensure finance reaches those who need it most, quickly and effectively.
The loan to El Salvador will benefit approximately 6,000 MSMEs. The Inter-American Development Bank, the World Bank, and the Central American Bank for Economic Integration are co-financing the program.
A $50 million loan to Pakistan will help finance the government’s program to strengthen health infrastructure and social safety nets and provide a counter-cyclical fiscal stimulus. This will include the provision of COVID-19 testing kits and protective equipment, cash assistance to 12 million families and daily wage workers in the industrial sector who lost their jobs, the purchase of 8.2 million tonnes of wheat, subsidies for agricultural businesses and SMEs, and financing for industry and exporters. Co-financiers include the Asian Development Bank, the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank, the International Monetary Fund, the World Bank and bilateral donors.
Under its Private Sector and Trade Finance Facility, the OPEC Fund also approved a $50 million loan to help boost energy access in Mozambique.
