Eximbank bolsters cooperation with Uzbekistan
Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank) CEO Bang Moon-kyu, left, shakes hand with Uzbekiztan Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade Sardor Umurzakov after signing a memorandum of understanding at Lotte Hotel in Seoul, Dec. 15. Courtesy of Eximbank
By Lee Kyung-min
The Export-Import Bank of Korea (Eximbank) said that it has agreed to strengthen bilateral economic cooperation via the Economic Development Promotion Facility (EDPF) with Uzbekistan, Korea's key regional partner country.
The EDPF is a funding program developed by the state lender, characterized by combining of aid and commercial financing needed to overcome the limitations of current aid programs in promoting large projects.
The bank CEO Bang Moon-kyu signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Uzbekistan Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Investments and Foreign Trade Sardor Umurzakov, at Cheong Wa Dae, Dec. 17. The signing was observed by President Moon Jae-in and Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev who visited Korea a day earlier.
The two agreed to strengthen cooperation in building infrastructure, IT, health and medical services, mostly in transportation, energy and water treatment sectors as well as industrial complexes. Uzbekistan government-led public projects and public-private cooperation projects (PPP) will be promoted as a result.
“Uzbekistan is actively fostering renewable energy-generation projects including solar and wind power in the form of public-private cooperation projects, increasing opportunities for Korean firms to enter the market,” Bang said.
The MOU followed a Dec. 15 agreement between Bang and Umurzakov concerning the Economic Development Cooperation Fund (EDCF) in the amount of $74 million (62 billion won) to be provided to Uzbekistan. The funds will be used to enhance medical supplies and equipment in the country, in the face of growing need to strengthen medical services amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Medical infrastructure in Uzbekistan is poor except in the capital city Tashkent, and the funds will help medical institutions buy new modern equipment in 14 regions, the bank said. This will in turn translate to stronger cooperation in the health and medical sectors between the two countries.
The bank has provided a total of $10.1 billion in aid programs to Uzbekistan using $9.5 billion in bank funds and $630 million in EDCF.