The African Import-Export Bank, Afreximbank, announced the establishment of a $ 1.5 billion mechanism in response to the COVID-19 pandemic (COPREFA) to finance African countries to fight against economic impact of the pandemic.
In addition to Afreximbank, the facility is co-financed by the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) – the trade finance arm of the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) – and the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa (BADEA). The funds will be made available to African central banks and trade organizations and will finance the equipment needed to meet the challenges of food security. Funding will be provided through regular channels, including direct funding, lines of credit, confirmation and refinancing of documentary credits.
“COPREFA is designed to help African economies overcome a myriad of challenges, including commodity price shocks, a significant decline in tourism, and disruption of supply chains and export manufacturing,” the report said. bank statement.
Afreximbank launched in March 2020 a financial package called the Pandemic Trade Impact Mitigation Facility (PATIMFA) to support economies through the pandemic – a facility from which more than $ 5 billion has been disbursed at the same time. at COPREFA.
