Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

World Bank Grants Yemen $100 Mn to Expand Electricity Access


Sun 03 Jul 2022 | 11:19 AM
Ahmad El-Assasy

Yemeni Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Waed Badhib said that the World Bank has authorised a $100 million grant for Yemen for the second stage of the Yemen Emergency Electricity Access Project.

According to Badhib, the initiative intends to enhance access to energy in rural areas and on the outskirts of cities, as well as to rebuild the sector's capabilities.

He clarified that the International Development Association (IDA), a pision of the World Bank, offers this additional funding in order to assist the world's poorest nations.

The project will be carried out by the UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) in collaboration with regional stakeholders.

The minister affirmed that many public service facilities would receive new or enhanced power services as a result of the recent donation, enhancing Yemenis' access to vital services.

Additionally, it will make solar systems available to creative and small businesses, fostering employment growth and advancing economic recovery to the targeted level.

Maeen Abdulmalik, the prime minister of Yemen, earlier announced that the World Bank has agreed to assist government agencies and promote economic recovery.

According to Abdulmalik, officials from the World Bank and the International Finance Corporation met with Yemeni officials in Aden.

"In order to enhance partnership and cooperation, respond to humanitarian and development needs, and support state capabilities to achieve stability and recovery, it was decided at the conference to increase the Bank's presence in Aden," the speaker said.

According to Abdulmalik, the discussion covered a number of significant problems pertaining to the food security and energy sectors as well as the most crucial concerns.

He emphasised the necessity for Yemen, which is suffering as a result of the conflict with the Iranian-backed Houthi militia, to focus on development.

He said that the government and the World Bank had reached an understanding on a number of topics to begin the next phase, which would concentrate on balancing development initiatives with emergency responses to sustainability.

The productive industries of agriculture, fishing, and financing were also agreed upon. They also activated monitoring over foreign organisations, specifically initiatives supported by the World Bank.

The premier emphasised the significance of the Bank's commitment to sustaining competencies within public institutions as the two argued the necessity to support the private sector.

The world bank has been a significant and strategic partner in Yemen since the 1960s, and the prime minister lauded its "unique experience" there.

The World Bank is helping to create powerful organisations that can carry out initiatives costing hundreds of millions of dollars, including the Public Works Project and the Social Fund for Development.

In the previous 18 months, the World Bank provided over $1 billion in funding for a number of initiatives through the International Finance Corporation, including those in the fields of health, education, and emergency cash transfers.