The Asian Development Bank (ADB) said Friday that it had approved a loan of 150 million dollars and an investment of two million dollars in Pakistan in an effort to improve that country's exports.
The loan will go to improving trade financing for small and medium enterprises while the investment will go to a private export credit agency, the Pakistan Export Finance Guarantee Agency Ltd., co-sponsored by 13 commercial and private sector banks, the Manila-based ADB said in a statement.
In addition, the ADB will provide a technical assistance grant of 800,000 dollars to boost the capacity of Pakistan's Export Promotion Bureau, it added.
This is part of a project to improve the efficiency of the trade finance system in Pakistan with better access for small and medium enterprises.
It could lead to an increase in exports of 350 million dollars a year, creating about 135,000 new jobs and supporting the livelihoods of one million people, the ADB's senior financial economist Werner Liepach said -- MANILA (AFP)
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