Prof. Edward Scicluna, Minister for Finance, has received a courtesy call by Deodat Maharaj, Deputy Secretary General (Economic and Social Development) at the Commonwealth Secretariat and Arun Sharma, Chief Investment Officer of the International Finance Corporation.

The aim of the visit was to take stock of the preparations for the setting up of the Commonwealth Small State Trade Finance Facility, a pilot initiative to support trade to and from Commonwealth small states. Out of 53 members of the Commonwealth, 31 countries are deemed to fall under the definition of small state.

The pilot initiative was mandated by the Commonwealth Heads of Government during their meeting in Kotte in November 2013.

The Facility aims to address the issue of the risk of smaller banks and smaller countries being excluded from standard trade finance facilities due to increased regulatory costs and higher risk perceptions. The initiative also aims to deepen relationships among leading trade finance providers and smaller financial institutions within the Commonwealth.

During the meeting, the Finance Minister lauded the progress achieved so far by the Commonwealth Secretariat and the Working Group. He reiterated that Malta is fully committed towards the project, noting that the Maltese Government will support the Facility both logistically and financially.