Improving the Role of Eximbanks/ECAs in the OIC Member States
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6. RECOMMANDATIONS AND CONCLUSIONS
6.1. Lessons Learned
Within the OIC countries, there is a wide range of experiences with ECAs. Many members have
no facilities at all; some members have very well developed schemes, refined over 30 years. Most
are in the early to mid-stages of development as institutions and have potential to improve their
performance, better align their efforts and expand their reach.
There is no debate on the need of some form of government involvement in providing or
supporting the provision of export credit finance or insurance for the purpose of enhancing
competitiveness of exports, access to finance for exporters and promoting growth and
diversification in certain export sectors. Even the most advanced economies have an official ECA
and face market gaps which the private sector sources of finance or insurance cannot fill. This is
especially the case when there is a temporary market disruption, such as occurred in 2008-2009
during the Global Financial Crisis.
Nearly every developed country has an official ECA. Each has been tailored and adjusted over
time to its own particular national circumstances. Few now occupy the dominant place in their
national trade finance schemes, but all have been deemed to play a legitimate and necessary role
as facilitators of international trade. More and more emerging markets are putting in place such
facilities.
How should the government support its ECA? Or, where no ECA exists, in what circumstances
and in what form should the government provide support for the establishment of an ECA? The
key factor in the success of an ECA is that it works with the grain of a country’s trade and finance
system, which can vary from country to country. There are no perfect models to be followed.
Indeed, in the face of ongoing and seemingly accelerating changes to the global economic and
trade system, constant review of the market needs is necessary if an ECA is to operate effectively.
However, ECAs are not free goods; they raise complex cost and governance issues that need to be
managed carefully. Moreover, to be effective, ECAs must recognize their role in the context of
economic needs and conditions, and the government’s broader economic policies and strategies.
There is danger in trying to copy others. The most successful ECAs have been – and still are –
those whose facilities and status/structure most precisely and cost effectively meet the changing
and, often, particular needs of their exporters and, importantly, of their banks and financing
institutions. Lessons can certainly be learned from the experiences of other countries – both on
what to do and, just as important, on what not to do - but this is very different from simply
copying or seeking to reproduce or transplant. Instead, adapting lessons from other countries
can be of significant value.
This section draws some important lessons learned from the existing ECA models within the OIC
and non-OIC countries and sets out some guidelines for how these lessons can be applied. There
are lessons both for governments in considering their support for an ECA, as well as for ECAs
themselves, to enhance and increase their effectiveness.