23.02.2011 | PR05/2011
February 23, 2011, Vienna, Austria
The OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) and nine partner countries of which four are African (Ethiopia, the Gambia, Niger and Sierra Leone), two Asian (Cambodia and China), one Latin American (Cuba) and one European (Bosnia & Herzegovina) has signed ten loan agreements to finance projects in key development sectors - energy, education, transport, health, water and agriculture. Implementation of the projects will provide vital services to communities that strive to improve living standards.
|
Country
|
Project
|
Amount
US$mil
|
| The Gambia |
The University of the Gambia |
5.00 |
| Ethiopia |
Energy Access Project |
20.00 |
| Burkina Faso |
Ziniaré Regional Health Centre |
7.20 |
| Niger |
Bella II Gaya Border with Benin Road Rehabilitation |
10.00 |
| Niger |
Emergency Food Security and Rural Development Program |
8.36 |
| Sierra Leone |
Water Supply and Sanitation |
19.00 |
| China |
Bayin River Management |
18.00 |
| Cambodia |
Water Resources Management Sector Development |
12.00 |
| Bosnia and Herzegovina |
Housing Reconstruction |
7.00 |
| Total |
|
118.60 |
All ten projects will be co-financed by the respective governments and various international institutions, including BANDES (Banco de Desarrollo Economico y Social de Venezuela), the Saudi Fund, the Kuwait Fund, the African Development Bank, the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, the International Development Association, the International Fund for Agricultural Development and La Banque Ouest Africaine de Développement.
At today’s signature ceremony, OFID’s Director-General, Mr. Suleiman J. Al-Herbish pledged that OFID’s support to developing countries toward achieving the MDGs “will continue to grow, in v iew of the needs of millions of people around the world.” He disclosed that OFID’s financial assistance to the countries which signed today’s agreements is a step forward in the fight against poverty.”
About OFID
OFID’s primary aim is to contribute to the socio-economic advancement of developing countries. OFID is engaged in almost all sectors of development and is contributing to global efforts toward meeting the Millennium Development Goals and the “missing 9th goal” which is the eradication of energy poverty, a key pillar for sustainable socio-economic growth and poverty reduction.
Since its inception, OFID has committed more than US$13 billion in support of sustainable development. For more information please visit: www.ofid.org.
