DUBAI: Abu Dhabi Fund for Development has suspen­ded debt service repayments for some countries and firms for the year, the state-finan­ced fund said on Sunday.

The fund provides financial assistance to companies in the United Arab Emirates and to developing countries, which has included Pakistan, Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia.

Debt service repayments would be suspended for eligible countries and individual companies from Jan 1 until Dec 31, the fund said in a statement.

Countries and companies would need to request to have repayments suspended. The fund did not say what the criteria would need to be met to be eligible for the scheme.

“At a time when the world is reeling under the effect of the pandemic ... it is imperative for us to support particularly those that need it most, especially the low-income countries,” the fund’s director general Mohammed Saif al-Suwaidi said.

Published in Dawn, July 13th, 2020