TASHKENT: The International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, kept supporting private sector growth in Uzbekistan throughout the past year, helping to cushion the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on businesses, while sustaining the economy and protecting jobs, IFC said on October 2.
IFC Director for Europe and Central Asia Wiebke Schloemer held a series of virtual meetings at the end of September with the leadership of ministries, state agencies, Central Bank of Uzbekistan and IFC client banks to discuss how IFC can continue to support Uzbekistan as it embarks on ambitious economic reforms. IFC Regional Manager for Central Asia Cassandra Colbert; IFC Senior Country Officer in Uzbekistan Zafar Khashimov; and heads of IFC’s industry and advisory teams also joined a virtual mission.
During the meetings, they discussed how to further support the country’s economic transformation by developing the private sector and bringing investments in key sectors, including banking, chemicals, cotton, energy, and telecom.
The IFC delegation also updated Uzbek leadership about the progress of the corporation’s program in Uzbekistan. During its fiscal year 2020, ending June 30, IFC helped improve access to finance for thousands of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises in Uzbekistan, supported the country’s chemical sector, and increased private sector participation in the economy with a total of $60 million in loans.
IFC also kept accompanying the country on its economic transformation journey through targeted advisory projects.
This included assistance aimed at modernizing and privatizing state-owned banks, and transforming the cotton sector with the introduction of modern, sustainable and responsible production practices.
In addition, IFC also helped further develop and diversify the country’s financial market, increasing access to finance, and piloting flagship public-private partnership (PPP) transactions in the energy and health sectors catalyzing both the capital and international expertise into the Uzbek private sector.
“IFC is standing by Uzbekistan and will continue to do so as it deals with the current economic crisis and coronavirus outbreak.
During my virtual visit, I was able to reaffirm our strong commitment to a prosperous, inclusive and sustainable Uzbekistan,” said Wiebke Schloemer, IFC Director for Europe and Central Asia.–Agencies
