NEWS RELEASE
WASHINGTON, July 29, 2013
- The World Bank Group committed a record US$14.7 billion in fiscal
year 2013 (July 2012 to June 2013) to support economic growth and better
development prospects in Africa despite uncertain economic conditions in the
rest of the global economy.
“The region has shown remarkable resilience
in the face of a global recession and continues to grow strongly,” said Makhtar Diop, World Bank Vice President for
the Africa Region. “Africa is at the
center of the World Bank Group 2030 goals of ending extreme poverty and
promoting shared prosperity, in an environmentally, socially, and fiscally
sustainable manner.”
The World
Bank Group continued its strong commitment to Africa approving $8.25 billion in new lending for nearly 100 projects this
fiscal year (FY13). These commitments include a record $8.2 billion in
zero-interest credits and grants from the International Development Association
(IDA), the World Bank’s fund for the poorest countries. This is the highest level of new IDA
commitments by any region in the Bank’s history.
Private sector leverages development investment
IFC’s total commitment volume in Sub-Saharan Africa,
including mobilization, grew to a record $5.3 billion, 34 percent more than the
year before. Similarly, IFC’s spending on Advisory Services programs in the
region increased to more than $65 million, about 30 percent of IFC’s total.
This led to increased results in fragile and conflict states and greater impact
in IFC’s primary areas of focus:
sustainable farming opportunities, access to finance for microfinance
clients and individuals, improved infrastructure services, and greenhouse gas
emissions reductions.
Supporting developmentally beneficial foreign direct
investment into Sub-Saharan Africa is a priority for MIGA. In 2013, the Agency
issued $1.5 billion in guarantees supporting investments into projects in the
agribusiness, oil and gas, power, services, and water sectors. A significant
volume of this coverage is for investments in power generation projects in
Angola, Côte d’Ivoire, and Kenya. Sub-Saharan African accounted for 54 percent
of MIGA’s new volume this year -- more than doubling last year’s level of 24
percent.
The Bank Group’s support focused on major transformational
projects in agriculture and power, and also on social safety nets, conditional
cash transfers for poor families, job creation programs for young people, and
higher education.
Stepping
Up the Game in Fragile Countries
In FY13, the World Bank Group increased its focus in Africa on
regional drivers of fragility and conflict, especially regarding the Sahel and
the Great Lakes regions. In May 2013, during an historic joint United
Nations/World Bank Group mission to the Great Lakes, the Bank announced a $1
billion development pledge to help countries in the region provide better
health and education services, generate more cross-border trade, and fund
hydroelectricity projects in support of the Great Lakes peace agreement.
Sending the strong message that peace and development are inseparable and must
be addressed together and also emphasizing the Bank’s commitment to increase
its work in states emerging from conflict and its determination to help lift
fragile states out of fragility and back on a positive development track.
Addressing
Climate Change
The Bank has been at the forefront of identifying operational
measures and partnerships (such as TerrAfrica) to integrate climate change in
land management, water resource management, transport infrastructure,
climate-smart agriculture, and disaster risk management and continues to advance
innovative policy solutions, including through the first climate change Development
Policy Loan, for Mozambique.
Climate change is also at the center of the growth agenda of
the Region. Clean energy projects -- in hydro, geothermal, solar, and gas --
are part of the Bank’s Africa strategy to limit the carbon footprint of growth
in the region and harvest enormous untapped potential for development. Many of
these current and planned projects benefit from IDA, MIGA, and IFC working
together across the World Bank Group to better leverage their development
investments in the region.
Accelerating
the Use of Science and Technology
Africa’s future depends on adapting existing and future
technology more rapidly. Large productivity gains are possible through better
training of Africans in science and technology, and enhanced agricultural
technology. During FY13 the Bank helped to bring higher education, with an
emphasis on science, back into the development agenda. African economies urgently need highly
skilled technicians and engineers, especially for energy and infrastructure.
They need agricultural scientists; medical workers; and researchers. Quality learning
outcomes in primary and secondary education require qualified teachers that
only universities can develop. The Bank continued to build partnerships to
support technological education.
For more information about the World Bank Group's total support to
developing countries in FY13 click here.
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News Release
2014/034/AFR
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