Doha: In implementation of the directives of the Amir HH Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al-Thani to support and provide financial and economic incentives to private sector companies affected by the implications of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, and based on the directives of HE Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Khalid bin Khalifa bin Abdulaziz Al-Thani, the Qatar Development Bank (QDB) included companies operating in the contracting and construction sector to take advantage of the COVID-19 National Response Guarantee Program, and extended the period of QDB's coverage of the percentage of financing loans granted through the programme to 12 months instead of 6 months.
Companies wholly owned by the private sector and affected by the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic are entitled to benefit from the national guarantee programme launched by Qatar Development Bank in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance and the Qatar Central Bank and all banks operating in the country, and to obtain financing with the aim of helping them to pay the salaries of their employees and special rental benefits.
To benefit from the programme, official representatives must communicate with the commercial or Islamic banks in which they hold accounts for the wage protection system and request for benefit must be submitted only through them. Requests can also be submitted on behalf of more than one company by Qatari citizen partners or owners of affected private sector companies.
QDB stated that companies wishing to benefit from the programme must be fully owned by private sector and registered in the wage protection system in force in Qatar.
According to this decision, the Qatar Government through the Qatar Development Bank will fully cover the percentage of financing loans during the first year on behalf of the beneficiary companies, as the programme's mechanism of action includes the provision of a 100% coverage guarantee by Qatar Development Bank to the commercial and Islamic banks that provide funding without taking any fees or commissions on the guarantee granted, whether by the commercial or Islamic banks or the beneficiary companies, provided that the financing is paid by the beneficiary company to the commercial and Islamic banking grantors within a maximum period of three years, including a grace period of one year.
QDB had announced National Response Guarantee Program that provides guarantees to local banks to grant loans to affected private companies in cooperation with the Ministry of Finance and the Qatar Central Bank (QCB) and all banks operating in the country, in response to the economic implications due to the spread of COVID-19.
The National Guarantee Program aims to support salaries and rents of companies in the private sector. QDB will manage and issue the guidelines for this program, while banks operating in the country will grant the financing on the basis of a guarantee from the QDB.
