The supporting program of the country’s development has been worked out in compliance with a new strategy during consultations with the government of Belarus, the representatives of organizations, private sector and international agencies. Thus, the World Bank plans to allocate nearly 100 million US Dollars annually during next four years as long-term loans. The Bank intends to render assistance to Belarus in solution of ecological problems of global value and the tasks in the sphere of power engineering, and also in increase of competitive ability of the national economy. Support will be directed to stimulation of the population income growth, and special attention will be paid to prosperity increase of the vulnerable categories.“A role of the Bank as a leading internal source of analytical information and an intermediate party in discussion of existing development variants in the country, is, perhaps, more significant, than provision of finance resources. We hope for continuation of this important cooperation direction within the frames of a new Cooperation strategy”, — announced the department director of the World bank in Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova Paul Birmingham.
Apart from consideration of the Cooperation strategy, the Board of Directors of the World Bank has approved additional financing at the rate of 15 million US Dollars for support of the project “Modernization of infrastructure in the social sphere of the Republic of Belarus”. The loan will be used for improvement of functional and sanitary-hygienic conditions in institutions of a social sector on the whole territory of Belarus, and special attention will be paid to increase of energy efficiency.
“The government of Belarus defined three main spheres, foreground for the financial support of the World Bank. They are increase of energy efficiency, provision of water quality and reliability of water supply systems, environmental protection and waste reclamation. The assets of the approved loan will be directed to rendering assistance to the government in his efforts to increase quality and economic efficiency of services, rendered to the population of Belarus. We also discuss events, which can be supported by the bank, in the sector of water supply and water removal, in energetic sphere”, — announced Paul Birmingham.
Ivan Tsyrulnikov
