World Bank fund raises $40m for Zimbabwe economic revival

A World Bank-administered fund has so far raised 40.4 million U.S. dollars to finance various programs aimed at helping Zimbabwe's economy recover from a decade of economic crisis that ended in 2008.

The Zimbabwe Reconstruction Fund (ZIMREF) was approved by the World Bank in 2014 and is funded through a multi donor trust fund comprising the European Union, Norway, Sweden, Switzerland and Britain.

According to the World Bank, the five-year ZIMREF is aimed at strengthening Zimbabwe's systems for reconstruction and development with a focus on stabilization and reform, reconstruction, development and poverty alleviation.

A World Bank senior official Gibson Guvheya said Wednesday eight projects with a total funding requirement of 61.4 million U.S. dollars had been approved, out of which 40.4 million had so far been mobilized.

Guvheya said the projects, most of them on implementation stage, seek to improve the ease of doing business in Zimbabwe, enhance financial sector inclusiveness, ensure state-owned enterprises reform and strengthen government budgetary controls to ensure efficient utilization of public resources.

Other projects being funded are a water and sanitation program for seven small towns and a climate change program.

From 2000, the World Bank's support to Zimbabwe has been limited to trust funds and technical assistance after the country defaulted on loan repayments to the global lender other multilateral creditors.

However, Zimbabwe is currently negotiating with the World Bank, International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the African Development Bank to pay 1.8 billion U.S. dollars in arrears to the three creditors in a bid to unlock fresh funding from the multilateral creditors to revive its stuttering economy.

The World Bank has projected Zimbabwe's economic growth to remain flat in 2016 at 1.5 percent due to a severe drought and poor mineral prices on the international market.

Source : XINHUA