Press Release

OPEC Fund Governing Board holds 114th Session

09/2006 March 14, 2006, Vienna, Austria
Press inquiries:

The Governing Board of the OPEC Fund for International Development today convened its 114th Session in Vienna, Austria.

1. H.E. Mr. Jamal Nasser Lootah of the United Arab Emirates was unanimously re-elected as Chairman of the Governing Board for a period of one year.
2. Following adoption of the meeting’s agenda, the Director-General of the Fund, Mr. Suleiman J. Al-Herbish, reporting to the Board on the Fund’s activities, indicated that on a cumulative basis, and as of the end of January 2006, US$5,614.3 million had been approved in loans to the public sector and US$3,872.7 million disbursed. These loans, which were extended for project and program financing and balance of payments support, as well as within the framework of the HIPC Initiative, number 1006. All major economic and social sectors have benefited from the Fund’s assistance, including agriculture, transportation, health, education, water supply and sewerage, industry, energy, etc.
   
   The Director-General further indicated that a total of 83 operations had been approved under the Fund’s Private Sector Facility. As of the end of January 2006, cumulative commitments through this window totaled US$417.9 million.
   
   In addition, the Fund has approved a total of 762 grants in support of various activities in the areas of technical assistance, food aid, emergency relief and research. Cumulative grant commitments, as of the end of January 2006, amounted to US$346.9 million, of which US$247.7 million has been disbursed. Moreover, the Fund has contributed, in grant form, substantial amounts to the resources of other international development institutions benefiting the South; these contributions total US$971.8 million, most of which has been disbursed. To date, the Fund has provided financial assistance to 119 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East and Europe.
   
   

3. In today’s session, the Board approved six public sector project loans worth US$38.5 million and detailed as follows:

Data Summary:

Country:	Project:	Amount (US$ million)
Kenya	Dundori-Ol Kalou-Njabini Road	10.0
Mauritius	Pailles Guibies Sewerage	4.00
Nicaragua	Municipal Social Investment	4.00
Seychelles	Perseverance Island Infrastructure	6.50
Vietnam	Thai Nguyen Province Multipurpose Rural Development	10.00
Zambia	Water Supply	4.00
TOTAL		38.5

The majority of the above loans has a maturity of 20 years, including a grace period of five years, and carries interest at rates ranging from 1% to 1.5%.

The projects will be co-financed with the governments of the beneficiary countries and with other donors, including the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, the Saudi Fund for Development, the Inter-American Development Bank and the Kreditanstalt für Wiederaufbau.

4. The Board also approved three grants directed at financing activities in the social, health and agriculture sectors. They total US$4 million (see press releases no. 10/2006-12/2006) and are described below:

   • US$1 million towards a global avian influenza control program;
   • US$500,000 to help countries in West Asia and North Africa manage scarce water resources; and
   • US$2.5 million to provide assistance to an urgent housing program for the poor and disabled; to be drawn from the Special Grant Account for Palestine.
5. The Board also discussed a number of issues relating to the Fund’s Private Sector Facility and considered several new investments and pipeline proposals.
6. Also in this session, the Board reviewed financial matters, including a report on provisioning for public sector loans. It discussed a report on the implementation of the Corporate Plan and considered a draft of the Fund's 2005 Annual Report. The replenishment of the grant account for Research and Similar Intellectual Activities and a provisional agenda for the 27th Annual Session of the Ministerial Council were considered. In addition, the Board noted a progress report on ongoing grant operations and looked at public sector operations under active consideration.
7. The Board also endorsed a new logo for the OPEC Fund.
8. The next Governing Board Session will take place in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on June 14, 2006.