Pakistan makes new pledge to the World Bank
Shares
ISLAMABAD: Economic Affairs Minister Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtyar informed the World Bank (WB) on Saturday that the Pakistan government would be able to complete three different development policy credits in due time, if they approve economic reforms proposed by the World Bank and Asian Development Bank (ADB) intended to simplify the execution of development projects.
The minister gave this briefing during a meeting with WB Country Director for Pakistan, Najy Benhassine, and shared Prime Minister Imran Khan’s direction to expedite the economic reforms in coordination with global donors.
Bakhtyar urged the World Bank official to expand the priority areas of cooperation with Pakistan in the field of energy, tourism, low-cost housing schemes, and the availability of a COVID-19 vaccine.
Khusro Bakhtyar also thanked and appreciated the World Bank for extending a $200 million package to help Pakistan take effective and timely action to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic. He also appreciated the World Bank support for locust emergency control project worth $200 million to mitigate the adverse impact of parasite attack on the food basket of the country.
The World Bank country director thanked the minister for WB portfolio review exercise, and appreciated the government’s resolve to expedite the implementation of bank-funded projects. He assured that the World Bank would consider the recommendations to strengthen its portfolio in Pakistan.
The three DPC series projects are: Securing Human Investments to Foster Transformation (SHIFT); Resilient Institutions for Sustainable Economy (RISE); and Programme for Affordable and Clean Energy (PACE).
