World Bank Group provides over $10.4 billion to Emerging Europe and Central Asia
2012-07-13 14:59:25
The World Bank Group provided US $10.47 billion in funding to governments in Emerging Europe and Central Asia (ECA) in fiscal year 2012, which ended on June 30, amid uncertainty in the Eurozone and modest growth, said the WB press release.
“Countries in Emerging Europe and Central Asia continue to face the challenge of sustainable recovery,” said Philippe Le Houérou, World Bank Vice President for the Europe and Central Asia region. “The crisis is harming the region through three main channels – finance, trade and workers’ remittances. The World Bank is supporting countries in their efforts to strengthen their economic structures, providing financial support to governments to improve public services, strengthen banking systems, and protect the most vulnerable from the impact of the crisis.”
The recently published Global Economic Prospects report highlights that growth in the region should slow in 2012 to 3.3 percent, assuming a resolution of the Euro Area crisis by end-2012. Bank support in ECA reached $6.6 billion this fiscal year, including $6.2 billion from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and $362 million from the International Development Association (IDA). Romania ($1.9 billion), Turkey ($1.1 billion), Kazakhstan ($1.1 billion) and Poland ($1 billion) were the largest borrowers. Lending was targeted in supporting three regional pillars: deepening reforms for improved competitiveness, supporting social sector reforms for inclusive growth, and helping countries take action for greening growth trajectories.
Through operations in the region in fiscal year 2012, the Bank helped stabilize the financial sector in Serbia and FYR Macedonia and increase access to finance for small and medium-size enterprises in Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, and Turkey. Its investments improved roads in Kazakhstan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Ukraine, and the South Caucasus; helped modernize the public administration in Romania; and financed efforts by Poland and the Russian Federation to diversify their economies and spur innovation.
In Tajikistan, the Bank is supporting the government’s efforts to channel support to the most vulnerable in times of need. Bank lending helped protect spending on social assistance programs in Albania, Armenia, Latvia, and Romania; education in Kazakhstan, FYR Macedonia, and the Russian Federation; and healthcare in Armenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Tajikistan, and the Kyrgyz Republic. It supported improvements to social safety nets and insurance in Moldova, provided Rapid Social Response and IDA grants to Tajikistan, and funded a health system improvement project in Uzbekistan.