ECA News July 2006

G8’s Plate is Full at Annual July Summit
Russia will host the annual G8 summit in St. Petersburg from July 15-18. The primary topics on the agenda will likely be energy security, relations with Iran, and foreign aid. Human Development Sector Director Ruth Kagia suggests that education should also be a priority at the meeting in a commentary published in the Russian newspaper Vedomosti.

President Wolfowitz’s Statement on World Bank–Russia Collaboration
As part of a meeting of the G8 Ministers of Finance in St. Petersburg, Russia, on June 9, World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz released a joint statement with Russian Minister of Finance Alexei Kudrin on the Bank’s partnership with Russia on global development. The focus will be to work together to help poor countries in the areas of debt relief, infectious diseases, and energy and development. Click here for the full joint statement and the press release.
  

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ALBANIA

World Bank supports Quality and Equity of Education System in Albania
The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved on June 1 a US$15 million credit to help Albania finance the Education Excellence and Equity Project. The project will help the government implement the National Education Strategy, specifically to improve the quality of learning conditions for all students, to increase enrollment in general secondary education, and to initiate the higher education reform. Click here for the press release.

World Bank Supports Avian Flu Prevention in Albania
The World Bank approved on June 27 a US$5 million credit for the Avian Influenza Control and Human Pandemic Preparedness and Response Project.  This project will strengthen the country's capacity to prevent the spread of the Avian Influenca among poultry, prevent the transmission of Avian Influenza from birds to other animals and humans, and prepare for a potential pandemic of Avian Flu transmission between humans. Click here for the press release.

Poverty Down in Albania, According to Study 
A study conducted jointly by a team of from the Institute of Statistics and the Bank finds that Albania made significant progress in poverty reduction between 2002 and 2005, thanks largely to high growth. Click here for the press release.


ARMENIA

World Bank Helps Armenia Prepare for Avian Flu
The World Bank approved on June 2 a credit of US$6.25 million for the Armenia Avian Influenza Preparedness Project. This project will assist the Government of Armenia in minimizing the threat posed to humans by avian influenza infection in domestic poultry and prepare for the control and response to an influenza pandemic and other infectious disease emergencies in humans. The project has three components: animal health, human health, and public awareness. Click here for the press release.

BOSNIA & HERZEGOVINA

The first quarter of 2006 saw strong economic growth, according to the World Bank's Second Economic Newsletter for Bosnia and Herzegovina. The report tracks and analyzes key economic and financial developments and trends in the country, and reports about ongoing and planned World Bank activities in BH.

BULGARIA

New Country Partnership Strategy to Ease European Union Accession
The World Bank’s Board discussed a new Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) for Bulgaria on June 13. The CPS is a key document that details the Bank’s support to Bulgaria to achieve its goal of sustainable growth and successful European Union membership. The CPS provides the basis for the Bank’s operations in the country—lending, analytical work, and technical assistance. The CPS for 2006-2009 envisages a lending program of up to US$300 million per year, along with significant analytical work and advisory services focusing on the country’s economic priorities, such as strengthening the investment climate for private sector growth and boosting employment. The CPS will focus on productivity and employment, fiscal sustainability and absorption of EU funds, and social inclusion. Click here for the full story.


KOSOVO

Kosovo Cleans Up Environmental Legacy
The World Bank approved on June 13 a $5.5 million loan for the Kosovo Energy Sector Clean-up and Land Reclamation Project. The main objectives of this project are to: (a) address environmental legacy issues related to open dumping of ashes on land; (b) enable the Kosovo Energy Corporation (KEK) to free land for community development purposes currently taken by overburden materials and enable KEK to remove Kosovo A ash dump; and (c) build capacity in KEK for continued clean-up and environmentally good practice mining operations. Click here for the press release.


MACEDONIA

World Bank Supports Judicial Reform in Macedonia
The World Bank approved on June 1 a €10 million loan for the Legal and Judicial Implementation and Institutional Support Project for FYR Macedonia. This project will facilitate the government’s efforts to strengthen the judicial system, which is one of the country’s key reform priorities in its progress toward European Union accession. The Project will enhance the existing reforms by improving judicial efficiency and effectiveness and the business climate through enhancing ministerial and judicial capacity to systemically implement the Government’s Judicial Reform Strategy and key laws, and by improving judicial infrastructure. Click here for the press release.


POLAND

Quality Roads and Improved Safety the Focus of New Project
The World Bank approved on June 6 a US$180.2 million loan for the Poland Third Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation Project. The Project will continue to improve the effectiveness of Poland's national road rehabilitation and maintenance systems, with emphasis on quality, efficiency, financial viability, safety, and road user satisfaction. The project includes support of road safety campaigns based on themes such as alcohol and driving, speeding, and child and pedestrian safety; support of an Intelligent Transport System study aimed at establishing national standards for gathering and transferring information; and technical assistance to help encourage better and faster absorption of EU regional funds for the current (2004-2006) and next (2007-2013) transport operational programs in Poland.


ROMANIA

Bank Supports Romania’s Efforts toward European Integration
The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors discussed the new Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) for Romania on June 13. The CPS is a key document that details the Bank’s support to Romania to achieve its goals of high growth and improved living standards in the context of integration and convergence with the European Union. The new strategy covers the period 2006-2009 and envisages a lending program in the range of US$450-$550 million per year, along with significant analytical work and advisory services. The CPS is organized around 3 central themes: accelerating structural and institutional reforms to support economic growth, addressing fiscal vulnerabilities and modernizing the public sector, and reducing poverty and promoting social inclusion. Click here for the press release and feature story.

Project to Improve Social Inclusion in Romania
The World Bank approved on June 13 a US$58.5 million loan for the Social Inclusion Project. The main objective of this project is to help the Government of Romania implement the Joint Inclusion Memorandum through assistance given to the existing or emerging programs that address the needs of the vulnerable/disadvantaged groups of Roma, persons with disabilities, youth at risk, and victims of domestic violence. The technical relationships that have already been developed will continue, by explicitly using, and thus building, country systems. Click here for the press release.


RUSSIA

World Bank Helps Improve Land and Real Estate Registration in Russia
The World Bank approved on June 13 a loan of US$50 million for the Russia Registration Project. The main objective of this project is to support on-going reforms of the registration system of rights in immovable property in Russia through improving procedures and the information flow from the registry to users with a development objective to facilitate the development of real property markets, improve the quality of services provided, and strengthen the linkages with other organizations dealing with real property. Click here for the press release.


TURKEY

Conditional Cash Transfer Conference in Istanbul
A Bank-wide Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) Conference took place in Istanbul during June 26-30. As a follow-up to the previous Mexico (May 2002) and Brazil (April 2004) conferences, the World Bank and the Government of Turkey co-sponsored the third international conference on CCT with support from several donors. About 250-300 people from around the world representing countries implementing or interested in CCT and their counterparts from the World Bank, donor agencies and relevant NGOs attended the Conference which intended to bring together practitioners and policy makers from countries representing the full range of countries with experience or interest in designing and implementing CCT interventions. Click here for the press release.

Turkey Investment Advisory Council Meets for the Third Time in Istanbul
Turkey organized its Third Investment Advisory Council Meeting on June 28-29, 2006. Shigeo Katsu, VP for ECA Region attended the Conference on behalf of World Bank together with IMF’s Deputy Managing Director Anne Krueger; and European Investment Bank’s President Philippe Maystadt.  20 multinational companies CEOs representing 12 different sectors attended this two day Council meeting during which Turkey’s Investment Climate and ways to draw more FDI to the Country were discussed in depth.

World Bank’s Job Creation Forum Addresses Labor Market Reform
A Forum on Job Creation in World Bank’s Eastern Europe and Central Asia Region was held in Istanbul on June 12-13, hosted by the World Bank’s Europe and Central Asia Human Development Unit and the Government of Turkey’s State Planning Organization. The two day conference brought together about 200 experts from across the region to share information on recent country experiences with labor market reform; discuss the policy implications of the latest World Bank and external research; attempt to arrive at a broad consensus on needed reforms to increase employment and improve the quality of jobs in the region; and discuss how the Bank and other donors can operationally support client countries in pursuing needed reforms.

New Project to Strengthen Small Businesses in Turkey
The World Bank approved on June 8 a loan of 150 million euros, equivalent of $180.2 million for the Access to Finance for Small and Medium Enterprises Project for Turkey. The objective of this project is to increase opportunities for Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in Turkey to obtain credit, while contributing to their growth. By providing SMEs with access to credit, the project will help increase the sales and productivity of Turkish SMEs. The project will also provide credit to regions in the east, southeast, and center of the country, where credit is less developed. This will help ensure that these areas are not left behind and that the credit and productivity gaps between more and less advanced regions are closed. Click here for the press release.

Reliable Electricity and Sector Restructuring Focus of New Project
The World Bank approved on June 6 a US$350 million loan for the Turkey Electricity Generation Rehabilitation and Restructuring Project. This project has two objectives: the first objective is to mitigate the risk of electricity supply shortages during the period of energy reform transition until around 2010. The second objective is to support the restructuring of the state-owned generation sector into corporate entities and prepare them for operation in the electricity market and for subsequent privatization. Click here for the press release.


UZBEKISTAN

Central Asia HIV/AIDS Project Launched
The Central Asia HIV/AIDS Control Project was officially launched at a conference in Uzbekistan on June 7. The conference aimed to raise public awareness of the project. Representatives of the Government, medical professionals, and regional project staff took part in the conference. Country Manager Martin Raiser led the country team. Participants discussed the objectives of the project, regional coordination, policy development and capacity building, and project monitoring and evaluation. There was also an overview of HIV/AIDS legislation in Central Asia and a discussion on the planned information campaigns designed to raise public awareness about the HIV/AIDS Regional Fund and its grant program. 

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Albania - Education Excellence and Equity
Albania - Avian Influenza Control and Human Pandemic Preparedness and Response
Armenia - Avian Influenza Preparedness
Bulgaria - Country Partnership Strategy
Kosovo - Energy Sector Clean-up and Land Reclamation
Macedonia - Legal and Judicial Implementation and Institutional Support
Poland - Third Road Maintenance and Rehabilitation
Romania - Country Partnership Strategy
Romania - Social Inclusion
Russia - Registration
Turkey - Electricity Generation Rehabilitation and Restructuring
Turkey - Access to Finance for Small and Medium Enterprises

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