The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) have approved a $500m loan to Pakistan.
The money is intended to ameliorate the damage caused by Covid-19, with money going towards the health sector, and those people and business most affected by the economic downturn.
The AIIB quotes the International Monetary Fund, which estimates that Pakistan’s total revenue in the 2020 fiscal year will decline by $6bn.
Konstantin Limitovskiy, the AIIB’s vice president of investment operations, said: "By supporting industries and vulnerable groups that have been hard hit by Covid-19, this financing will help mitigate the economic shock and social impacts the country is currently facing.
"Preventing long-term damage to the productive capacity of the economy is essential. AIIB’s joint efforts with the international community are targeting this need."
The AIIB and ADB recently supplied a similar $250m loan to Bangladesh.
Image: The Hunza valley in Pakistan (Dreamstime/Punnawit Suwattananun)
