Uzbekistan open to investment

As published in the 03/2020 issue of the OPEC Fund Quarterly.

The OPEC Fund recently signed its first trade finance agreement with Uzpromstroybank – one of the oldest financial institutions in Uzbekistan – to support the trade finance requirements of local businesses. 

The US$20 million term loan will enable Uzpromstroybank (Uzbek Industrial and Construction JSC Bank) to expand access to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), an important driver of economic growth and job creation. The Bank will extend trade loans to finance sub-borrowers in different sectors such as agriculture, healthcare, construction and textiles. 

Reforms initiated by the Uzbekistan government are opening up the country’s economy and encouraging private sector investment. The OPEC Fund is supporting Uzpromstroybank as it grows its SME portfolio, leveraging its existing SME client base of more than 23,000 clients. This partnership will improve access to trade finance for local companies.

The OPEC Fund has long supported socio-economic development in Uzbekistan, but this is our first trade finance transaction with a financial institution,” said OPEC Fund Director-General Dr Abdulhamid Alkhalifa. “The transaction is a good example of how the private sector can contribute to development, and we are pleased to support SMEs – a vital sector in any economy – to help Uzbekistan make progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 8 on inclusive and sustainable economic growth and decent employment.”

For more than two decades, the OPEC Fund and Uzbekistan have worked together in the name of socio-economic development.