The International Finance Corporation (IFC) is partnering with Bank Al Habib to support letters of credit (L/Cs) for the import of essential goods and equipment into Pakistan and foster a sustainable recovery from the Covid 19 pandemic.

The trade facility for the bank will enable it to support longer-term imports of capital goods, including vital equipment, machinery, and tools, under the IFC's Global Equipment Finance Facility (GEFF).

More L/Cs

Under this facility, IFC extends guarantees up to five years to selected partners for capital goods imports with the focus on climate change.

The project will enable Bank Al Habib to issue L/Cs for up to 37 months for the import of critical capital goods into Pakistan, which has been constrained because of the pandemic.

Long-term partnership

Bank Al Habib is a long-term partner in IFC's Global Trade Finance Programme (GTFP), under which the World Bank Group member will guarantee L/Cs and other trade finance instruments.

The GTFP supports trade in emerging markets by providing partial or full guarantees against underlying trade instruments and covering the payment risk of participating issuing banks.

This article represents the views of the author and not necessarily those of the ICC or Coastline Solutions.