Latest update November 19th, 2024 12:38 AM
Guyana not among 93 countries benefitting from World Bank’s COVID-19 aid
As of May 1, the World Bank announced that it is currently assisting 93 countries in their fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
World Bank Group President, David Malpass
The Bank said that the aid is passing through its fast-track approach developed in April to support COVID-19 related health projects. It expects to roll out support to 18 countries in the future. An interactive map provided by the Bank, of all countries receiving help, shows that Guyana has so far, not benefitted from assistance within this initiative.
This is despite the Minister of Finance, Winston Jordan, announcing weeks ago that Government asked the Bank for US$5M in aid to combat the pandemic.
Jordan, in an NCN interview, had commented on the finance initiatives, arguing that many of the countries listed as beneficiaries would not receive funding until months later. This turned out not to be so, as the Bank stated that it is assisting countries with active health projects.
The Bank has already committed several billions of dollars to its initiative.
Furthermore, May marks the beginning of a “debt payment suspension by IDA countries if they request forbearance.”
IDA means International Development Association, an initiative that considers the needs of 76 of the world’s poorest countries, one of which is Guyana.
IDA’s debt suspension project follows a call by the International Monetary Fund (IMF)’s Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva and World Bank Group President, David Malpass, for official bilateral creditors to grant debt suspension to countries eligible for IDA financing – considered the world’s poorest countries.
That initiative is meant to free up finances for those countries to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Minister Jordan has not yet stated whether Guyana would apply for debt suspension through this initiative.
Notably, the Bank’s President, Mr. Malpass said that the initiative is compounded by an important opportunity for those poor countries to show transparency and full disclosures in their public sector finances. It is common for these institutions to require countries to implement certain transparency best practices, as an eligibility requirement for aid.
“Debt and investment transparency are high priorities in order to improve the quality of a country’s financial commitments and encourage more investment,” Malpass said in a statement.
In addition to those initiatives, the Bank is working to ensure that remittance channels are kept open and to ensure that costs to transfer are kept at an affordable rate. A recent study has projected that remittances are set to decline 20 percent in 2020 due to the COVID-19 crisis and measures taken to keep people safe.
“Remittances are a vital source of income for developing countries. They help families afford food, healthcare, and basic needs,” the World Bank stated.
Malpass said that the last few weeks dealing with the COVID-19 issue for the World Bank has been productive, but that the poorest countries have a very long road to recovery.
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