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ECA News, August 2003
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 | The Monthly Newsletter of the World Bank’s Europe and Central Asia (ECA) Region
Highlights in this issue
- Regional Operational Results for FY03
- Launch of Southeastern Europe HIV/AIDS Study
- Hand-over to a New Regional Vice President
Also
- Country and Sector News
- Announcements
- New and Revised Project Documents Online
Regional Operational Results for FY03
ECA's lending during fiscal 2003, which ended on June 30, was $2.67 billion [$580 million in International Development Association (IDA) credits and $2.089 billion in International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loans], and Global Environment Facility (GEF) commitments totaled $27.3 million. The region delivered 54 regular and five GEF projects for a total of 59 operations, plus three IDA supplemental credits. The size of ECA's active portfolio in FY03 was $15 billion. In terms of advisory services in FY03, 81 analytical reports were delivered, and 63 technical assistance engagements were undertaken regionwide.
Southeastern Europe HIV/AIDS Study Launch
HIV/AIDS in Southeastern Europe: Case Studies from Bulgaria, Croatia, and Romania was released on July 10, at a video-linked press conference that connected Bulgaria, Croatia, Romania and Washington. The new report reviews the current status of AIDS epidemics in the three countries, evaluates the approaches and strategies currently being used in each country, and makes recommendations both for government strategies and for the Bank’s current and potential future involvement. In each country, representatives from the health sector (either ministries or the medical arena), NGOs, international organizations and the mass media attended. Media in Southeast Europe covered the event extensively. For more information, click here.
Hand-over to a New Regional Vice President
The transfer of responsibilities from outgoing ECA Vice President Johannes Linn to incoming ECA Vice President Shigeo Katsu has taken place, marked by a warm celebration and farewell on July 31. Johannes told staff he looks forward to new challenges during his retirement and noted that his involvement in ECA will continue into September. He will travel to Tajikistan at the end of August to represent the ECA region once more at the Dushanbe International Fresh Water Forum. As of September 15, Johannes will occupy his new office at the Brookings Institution, as a Visiting Scholar.
Country and Sector News
ALBANIA
Support for Economic Growth and Poverty Reduction
On July 10, the Bank's Board of Executive Directors approved a US$18 million Second Poverty Reduction Support Credit (PRSC-2). This is the second in a series of three single-tranche programmatic operations. The credit will develop and implement policies and structural reforms that are consistent with and supportive of the Government’s three-year National Strategy for Social and Economic Development (NSSED). The PRSC-2 will support more effective and efficient policy formulation and implementation, improved access to social services and better targeting of scarce fiscal resources to those most in need, and policies conducive to sustained growth. For more information, click here.
BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA
Four Agreements on Technical Assistance signed with IDA
On July 7, Bosnia and Herzegovina signed two agreements with IDA, and the state's two entities--Republika Srpska and the Bosnia and Herzegovina Federation--each signed a separate agreement with IDA. Bosnia and Herzegovina signed an Agreement on the Social Insurance Technical Assistance Project (SITAP) and an Agreement on a Development Credit for Project Development and Forest Protection. The entities respectively signed the Project Agreement on the Social Insurance Technical Assistance Project and the Project Agreement for the Development and Forest Protection Project. For more information, click here.
Prime Minister, Bank Officials Meet on Credit for Ex-Soldiers and Privatization Project
Bosnia and Herzegovina Federation Prime Minister Ahmet Hadzipasic and Minister of Soldiers and Disabled War-Veterans' Affairs Ibrahim Nadarevic met on July 2 with World Bank representatives for an assessment of the Social Sector Adjustment Credit (SOSAC) II credit over the preliminary draft of law on soldiers. With the passage of this new law, the FBiH Government aims to secure equal rights for all soldiers in FBiH. Two days later, Hadzipasic met again with Bank officials on the Privatization Technical Assistance Credit (PTAC) and expressed the FBiH's Government commitment to actively participate in the individual assessment of each privatization project, through all its stages. For more information, click here.
New Water Supply System Officially Opened in North Mostar
On July 8, a newly-constructed water-supply system was officially handed over at the Bosnjaci well in Mostar's North municipality. The construction of the system is part of the first phase of a comprehensive project to rehabilitate the water supply systems in Mostar. The opening of the system will provide drinking water to more than 5,000 citizens of the Hum I, Gradina and Vrapcici settlements.
BULGARIA
Essay Competition Held on Bulgaria's Development
The Bulgaria Development Gateway and the World Bank Country Office in Sofia organized an essay competition called "A Million for Development" to provoke discussion among citizens on the country's development priorities. The 61 submissions posited ideas on how to invest $1 million to solve Bulgaria's development challenges. Short-listed ideas were defended by each author in front of a jury. The first prize went to Assen Alexandrov, a manufacturer and distributor of electronic cash registers. His essay described the need to invest in the Bulgarian people to promote self-respect, and free, critical thinking. The award ceremony was attended by Oscar de Bruyn Kops, Country Manager for Bulgaria, Igor Damyanov, Minister of Education and Science, and by more than 100 representatives of academia, government, NGOs, and the private sector. Participants in the contest will continue the debate about the country's challenges and priorities online, through the Bulgaria Development Gateway portal. For more information on the World Bank’s work in Bulgaria, visit http://www.worldbank.bg/
CROATIA
Rijeka Gateway Project Approved
On July 12, three loans totaling US$156.5 million for the Rijeka Gateway Project were signed between three Croatian public utilities, the Croatian Government and the World Bank. The project will increase Croatia’s trade competitiveness by improving the heavily trafficked Rijeka Gateway for both freight and passenger travel through modernizing the port and road network connections, and privatizing port operations. The protected position and natural depth of 25 meters of the Rijeka Port makes it the only port in the northern Adriatic capable of handling larger vessels. Improvements to the port/city interface redevelopment and the international road (the Rijeka Bypass and the port connector road) will result in considerable benefits for the population of Rijeka and beyond. For more information, click here.
LITHUANIA
World Bank and GEF Support Efficiency of District Heating in Lithuania
On July 15, Mantas Nocius, Country Manager, signed GEF grant agreements with Vilnius City Municipality and with Vilniaus Energija -- in the amount of US$4 million and US$2.5 million, respectively -- to finance the Vilnius Heat Demand Management Project. The project aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the Vilnius District Heating system by implementing financially sustainable and replicable energy efficiency investments in the residential sector of the Vilnius City. For more information about the project, click here.
MOLDOVA
Government signs HIV/AIDS Control Project
On July 11, an agreement for a $5.5 million IDA grant for the HIV/AIDS Control Project was signed in Chisinau. Signatories included Mr. Andrei Gherman, Minister of Health, and Mr. Edward Brown, World Bank Country Manager. The IDA-supported HIV/AIDS Control Project is part of the country's national TB/AIDS/STI Program. The nationwide program is presently funded at $14.7 million, including the IDA grant. Other contributions will come from USAID (a $4 million grant to fight TB), the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria (a grant of about $5 million), and the government (counterpart funding of $250,000). For more information about the project, click here.
ROMANIA
Board approves loan for Irrigation Rehabilitation and Reform Project
On July 31, the World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved an US$80 million loan to Romania for the Irrigation Rehabilitation and Reform Project, aimed at achieving sustainable and equitable use of irrigation water for agriculture production. For more information, click here.
Loan Agreement for Electricity Market Project Signed
A Loan Agreement worth 74.3 million Euros (US$82 million equivalent) to support the Electricity Market Project was signed between Romania’s national power grid company Transelectrica and the World Bank, at a ceremony held at Romanian Ministry of Public Finance on July 15. The project, which was approved by Bank's Board on June 13, aims to develop a well-functioning wholesale electricity market as well as improve the efficiency and reliability of the transmission system. Andrew Vorkink, World Bank’s Director for South Central Europe Country Unit, and Jean Constantinescu, Director General of Transelectrica, signed the Loan Agreement. The Guarantee Agreement was signed by Andrew Vorkink and Romania’s Minister of Public Finance, Mihai Tanasescu. For more information about the project, click here.
SLOVAKIA
Legal and Judicial Sector Assessment Report Launched
The World Bank Office in Bratislava and the Slovak Ministry of Justice jointly organized the launch of a Legal and Judicial Sector Assessment Report on July 10 in Banska Bystrica to evaluate the Slovak Republic’s legal and judicial systems and institutions by identifying their strengths and weaknesses. The report aims to build a broader understanding for the need for reform in the legal profession and its impact on countries such as Slovakia. Lubomira Zimanova- Beardsley, Senior Counsel of the Bank and one of the authors, presented the report.
Announcements
Beyond Transition: New Europe and Central Asia Brochure
A new booklet produced by the World Bank’s ECA Region takes a snapshot of progress in the region to date, lays out the Bank’s vision for the next 10 years, and provides examples of work in several key areas. To view the brochure, visit
http://lnweb18.worldbank.org/ECA/eca.nsf/Attachments/ECA+Brochure/$File/BeyondTransition.pdf
Meeting the Environment Millennium Development Goal in Europe and Central Asia - New Report
The globally agreed Millennium Development Goal of achieving environmental sustainability has three targets: halve, by 2015, the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water and basic sanitation; integrate the principles of sustainable development into country policies and programs and reverse the losses of environmental resources; and by 2020, achieve a significant improvement in the lives of at least 100 million slum dwellers. A new World Bank report reviews the status of the 28 countries of Europe and Central Asia with respect to meeting the targets, examines linkages between the Environmental MDG and the Health and Poverty goals, and analyzes the costs of meeting the targets. To view the full report, including the executive summary in English and Russian, click here.
Poll Presents ECA Opinions
What do the publics in the ECA region think about the World Bank and development issues of the day? The Bank recently released the results of one of the largest and most comprehensive surveys ever conducted on international development issues with opinion leaders. Countries surveyed included Armenia, Bosnia & Herzegovina, the Kyrgyz Republic, Poland, Russia and Turkey. Topics ranged from corruption to the business climate to globalization to perceptions of the Bank. For more information, visit
http://www.worldbank.org/eca/ecaext/globalPoll_files/frame.htm
New and Revised Project Documents Online
ARMENIA - Urban Heating (Previously Gas and Heat Restructuring)
http://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDS_IBank_Servlet?pcont=details&eid=000104615_20030701165105
KOSOVO - Community Development Fund II
http://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDS_IBank_Servlet?pcont=details&eid=000094946_03051504085271
POLAND - Roads III PSAL
http://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDS_IBank_Servlet?pcont=details&eid=000104615_20030701164602
SERBIA AND MONTENEGRO - Montenegro Environmentally Sensitive Tourist Areas
http://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDS_IBank_Servlet?pcont=details&eid=000094946_0306190408549
SLOVAK REPUBLIC - Health Sector Modernization Support
http://www-wds.worldbank.org/servlet/WDS_IBank_Servlet?pcont=details&eid=000094946_03050704115789.
For more information on the World Bank's work in Europe and Central Asia, visit www.worldbank.org/eca
Miriam Van Dyck
Europe and Central Asia External Affairs
The World Bank
Telephone (202) 458-2931
Fax (202) 614-1008 | | |
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