WASHINGTON, October 3, 2013 – The World Bank Group’s Board of Executive Directors today endorsed a new four-year Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) for Guinea focused on improving governance and effective government services while promoting shared economic growth to ensure equal opportunities and benefits for all Guineans.
“Guinea is grappling with a history of political instability and isolation, few governing institutions, and a lack of vital infrastructure for service delivery,” says Ousmane Diagana, the World Bank Country Director for Guinea. “The new strategy aims to help the country tackle these challenges, building on the strong results that have been accomplished so far, and help to ensure that all Guineans benefit with good jobs and better services.”
The CPS is fully aligned with the Government’s Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP-III), an ambitious plan to use Guinea’s large mining revenues to significantly reduce poverty, create jobs and boost the private sector. The program will be organized along two main objectives:
Improving governance and state effectiveness – by supporting public finance and management reforms. It will also support rural populations with boosting access to education and health services while developing social and economic infrastructure.
Catalyzing shared growth and economic diversification – by developing programs to support products with high export potential (tourism, trade, crafts), and increasing the supply of crops and agricultural products to improve food supply and proper nutrition throughout the country.
This new CPS incorporates interventions by the International Development Association (IDA*), the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA). The overall program will include financial, knowledge, advisory and partnership activities to support the Government’s strategy for accelerated growth and sustainable economic and social development.
“IFC looks forward to helping the Government of Guinea establish an enabling environment for private companies,” says Yolande Duhem, IFC Director for West and Central Africa. “The private sector can help improve energy services, and boost tourism, crafts and other export industries while improving the quality of life for Guinean families.”
This CPS was developed after extensive consultations with civil society, NGOs, government, business and donor communities in the country’s capital city, Conakry, and in rural communities.
Since December 2010, Guinea has entered a new development era and re-engaged with the World Bank Group. Development projects have been restructured and the Government has made progress maintaining macroeconomic stability and qualifying for debt relief with the Highly Indebted Poor Country Initiative (HIPIC) and the Multilateral Debt Relief Initiative (MDRI). Guineans voted on September 28, 2013 in the first parliamentary elections for more than a decade, to elect 114 representatives in a national assembly, which will replace the transitional body (CNT) that has been playing the role of legislative body since military rule came to an end in 2010.
The national IDA portfolio consists of 8 operations amounting to US$194. million. About US$64 million remain to be disbursed. Guinea also benefits from four regional operations amounting to US$68.1 million, such as the Niger Basin Water Resources Development and Sustainable Ecosystems Management Project, and the West Africa Regional Communications Infrastructure Project.
About the World Bank Group
The World Bank Group is one of the world's largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries. It comprises five closely associated institutions: the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) and the International Development Association (IDA), which together form the World Bank; the International Finance Corporation (IFC); the Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA); and the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes (ICSID). Each institution plays a distinct role in the mission to fight poverty and improve living standards for people in the developing world. For more information, please visit www.worldbank.org, www.miga.org, and www.ifc.org.
* The World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), established in 1960, helps the world’s poorest countries by providing zero-interest loans and grants for projects and programs that boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve poor people’s lives. IDA is one of the largest sources of assistance for the world’s 82 poorest countries, 40 of which are in Africa. Resources from IDA bring positive change for 2.5 billion people living on less than $2 a day. Since 1960, IDA has supported development work in 108 countries. Annual commitments have increased steadily and averaged about $16 billion over the last three years, with about 50 percent of commitments going to Africa.
