WORLD BANK ROLLS OUT US$9 BILLION IN FINANCING

By D. Arul Rajoo

BANGKOK, July 7 (Bernama) -- The World Bank Group responded quickly to the
impact of global financial crisis on the East Asia and Pacific region with
over US$9 billion in financing for development in the past one year.

The bank said in a report Tuesday that this represented a significant
increase on the amount of financing of the previous year, adding that it also
ramped up its technical assistance to help governments in the region address the
social and economic impacts of the crisis.

The World Bank Group's International Bank for Reconstruction and Development
(IBRD) which provides financing, risk management products and other financial
services to middle-income countries, increased its assistance to US$6.9 billion,
up from $2.7 billion the previous year.

The International Development Association (IDA) which provides interest-free
credits and grants to the lowest-income countries, provided US$1.2 billion in
support in the fiscal year 2009 that ended June 30, 2009.

As the largest provider of multilateral financing for the private sector in
the developing world, the World Bank's private sector arm -- the International
Finance Corporation (IFC) -- also increased its support to help boost private
sector-led recovery.

IFC generated US$1.1 billion of new business in 45 projects, seven of these
are located in conflict-affected countries and regions, while one in every five
projects has a climate change component.

Although growth in East Asia and Pacific still compares favourably with that
of other regions, the poor and the vulnerable have been deeply affected by the
global economic crisis, said World Bank Group vice president for the East Asia
and Pacific region James W. Adams.

In this region alone, more than 10 million people who would otherwise have
moved out of poverty are expected to remain below the poverty line, he said.

"We have adjusted our regional strategy and increased resources for the
region to help countries weather the economic crisis and ensure priority
programmes remain on track. This includes investments in infrastructure,
education, health, agriculture, and social safety nets," he said.

The World Bank said that many countries in the region were just beginning to
recover from the food and fuel crisis of 2008 when the global financial crisis
hit.

The Group responded by increasing its support -- in loans, grants, equity
investments and guarantees -- to help countries and private-sector firms deal
with the devastating effects of the global financial meltdown.

-- BERNAMA