Contacts In Washington: Eric Chinje (202) 458 8418 echinje@worldbank.org In Dakar: Mademba Ndiaye (221) 849 50 00 mademba@worldbank.org WASHINGTON – July 8, 2008 - The World Bank approved today a US$10 million Poverty reduction support credit (PRSC-4) to support the last year of implementation of Cape Verde’s first Growth and Poverty Reduction Strategy (GPRSP-I). This credit will specifically help the archipelago of 472,000 inhabitants to improve the public expenditure management, to reform and modernize the public administration and to strengthen the decentralization and municipal management capacity. Ms. Manuela Francisco, Economist and Team task leader at the World Bank, assured that this one-tranche operation is a transition between the first and the second PRSC series, which will be based on the GPRSP-II already finalized by the Government. She added that this new credit “will support the improvement of quality and efficiency of basic health, modernization and rationalization of the social protection services, with a focus on improving the normative and operational framework for social protection services at the municipal level”. The measures supported by the PRSC are expected to have a significant positive impact on poverty reduction, including by enhancing transparency and accountability in public resources use. This fourth budget support is also to support the expansion of health infrastructure, particularly in remote areas, that would increase access to quality health services for the poor, and the strengthening and extension of basic social protection to the poor. Ms. Francisco recalled that the PRSC-4 supported three of the five pillars of the GPRSP-1. Promotion of good governance, the development of human capital, and the improvement of the effectiveness and sustainability of the social protection system, Budget support in Cape Verde has been catalytic for donor harmonization around key policy measures and results, noted the Task team leader, adding that “the PRSC has been prepared in close coordination with IMF and its Policy Support Instrument review".
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