DFIs face greater challenges in 2009

MANILA, Philippines - Development finance institutions (DFIs) are assuming greater roles in helping economies cope with the global economic crisis as governments roll out stimulus programs.

“This poses both challenges and opportunities for DFIs in the Asia Pacific region, where these institutions are mostly state-owned,” Octavio B. Peralta, secretary general of the Association of Development Financing Institutions in Asia and the Pacific (ADFIAP), said.

Nearly a hundred delegates from ADFIAP’s member-institutions and other regional and international organizations discussed their responses to the global economic crisis at the 32nd ADFIAP Annual Meeting in Muscat, Oman late last month.

The theme for this year’s meeting, “Financing Development Amidst the Global Crisis: DFIs Responses, Challenges and Opportunities,” is considered very timely in light of the conditions currently underpinning the global economic system.

ADFIAP serves as the focal point of all development banks and other financial institutions engaged in the financing of sustainable development in Asia Pacific.

ADFIAP chairman Fuimaono Falefa Lima said the 32nd ADFIAP meeting came at a “more opportune and relevant time” as DFIs craft strategies to effectively respond to the global economic crisis, meet the challenges it poses, and exploit the opportunities it presents. Lima is also the general manager of the Development Bank of Samoa.

Oman Development Bank (ODB) general manager Samir Saied said that the bank is prepared to keep its level of lending and do its part in contributing to the diversification of the Oman economy.

ODB has been financing start-up and expansion projects at state subsidized rates to help the Oman government. The bank is also launching new working capital finance products, including those for the small and medium enterprises (SMEs) and the agricultural sector, to help sectors cope with the crisis.

Other member-institutions of ADFIAP, which has a network that spans 40 countries and territories, are also involved in providing liquidity to various industries.

Peralta cited the case of the Development Bank of Japan, which has been mandated by the Japan government to inject fresh liquidity to exporting companies hardly hit by the crisis. Through this type of involvement, ADFIAP member-institutions are also aiding in rebuilding confidence in regional economies.