World Bank defends $75m loan to Edo

THE World Bank has defended the $75 million loan to Edo State Government, saying it grants significant funding only to trusted governments who will use the funds judiciously to achieve development results.

Speaking yesterday at a three-day retreat for members of the state executive council and permanent secretaries in Abuja to discuss and re-strategise on governance in the state, with the theme, “Finishing Well”, two top executives of the World Bank, Mrs. Gloria Joseph Raji and Dr. Khwima Nthara, said the bank trusts Edo State Government to use the fund properly for development results.

The bank executives said, “Each time we came to Edo, we were quite impressed that we were taken around to see the results of these reforms and that is why it was easy for us at the World Bank to sell the reforms programmes in Edo to our board in Washington.”

Mrs. Raji, Senior Economist, Macro-Economic and Fiscal Management, World Bank, Nigeria said, “through programmes for result financing, the World Bank provides finance for governments with a focus on result and capacity building. So disbursement of funds is based on specific programme results that have been pre-agreed on between the bank and respective governments.

“For example, we could say, if you achieve this level of vaccination with your own resources, then we will disburse some money to you.”

She continued, “When we disbursed $75 million under the First Developmental Policy Operation to Edo State, we did not say you must use it to build this hospital, or this school or all of that. It was on the basis of your completion of critical policies and institutional actions, which we call ‘prior actions’.

“On the basis of completion of certain critical policies and institutional reforms actions which has been agreed between you and the bank, the loan is approved and so, funds are being transferred.