The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Far East Horizon Limited (FEH) entered a $75 million loan agreement to strengthen the capacity of rural public hospitals and support coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic control in the People’s Republic of China.
The loan will allow FEH’s subsidiary International Far Eastern Leasing Co., Limited (IFEL) to provide finance to rural public hospitals for lease of modern medical equipment. At least 60% of the loan will be used to finance leases for COVID-19 treatment hospitals in rural areas.
“Hospitals’ bank financing activities are often constrained, because banks do not accept medical equipment as collateral. The pandemic has not only added stress to the health care system, but also reduced the availability of long-term financing from commercial sources,” said ADB’s Private Sector Financial Institutions Division Director Christine Engstrom. “This funding from ADB will help support long-term lease of health care equipment and promote the expansion of rural health care leasing operations.”
FEH will also use the loan funds to train frontline staff and promote public awareness on gender-based violence (GBV) in hospitals it operates. An increase of GBV incidence since the COVID-19 breakout has been observed in some countries.