File Photo: Agencies.

BUENOS AIRES, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Argentine President Alberto Fernandez on Wednesday unveiled a plan to invest more than 700 million U.S. dollars to help small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) recover from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Financial Reactivation and Inclusion Plan for Small and Medium-sized Enterprises calls for investing some 57.5 billion pesos (about 717.9 million U.S. dollars) to promote production and development in the sector.

"Small and medium-sized companies are the ones that create work in Argentina," Fernandez said during a video conference from the presidential residence in Buenos Aires.

"We must find the best way to invigorate that economic development in Argentina," he added.

Minister of Productive Development Matias Kulfas said the plan will offer direct credits through the Productive Development Fund, and financing from public and private banks, with loans at subsidized rates of between 18 and 25 percent.

The South American country reported its first case of COVID-19 on March 3 and registered 1,329,005 cases and 36,106 deaths from the disease as of Tuesday night.