The International Finance Corporation (IFC), the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, has announced its first-ever local currency investment in Pakistan, aimed at strengthening the country’s agriculture sector and food security.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, the IFC said it would provide an unfunded partial credit guarantee of up to Rs33.6 billion to support long-term Pakistani rupee financing from Standard Chartered Bank Pakistan Limited to Engro Fertilisers Limited. The initiative marks IFC’s maiden rupee-denominated investment in the country and is designed to expand access to long-term local and foreign currency financing.
The financing will help Engro Fertilisers invest in plant maintenance, ensure uninterrupted fertiliser supply, support farmer programmes and strengthen the agri-value chain by mobilising domestic capital. The investment is further backed by a first-loss counter guarantee from the IFC-Canada Facility for Resilient Food Systems.
IFC officials said the project would address structural challenges in agriculture, a sector contributing 24 per cent to GDP, 70 per cent to exports and 40 per cent to employment, while also reducing exchange rate risks for local businesses.
