WASHINGTON, DC. December 21, 2016 — The World Bank approved an additional financing of $80 million to supplement the $50 million fiscal consolidation Development Policy Operation (DPO) approved in December 2015 for Chad. This funding will help maintain macroeconomic and fiscal stability, protect vital social programs, and sustain the reforms agreed for the medium term.
“The impact of combined exogenous shocks that effected the country is unprecedented and could not be subdued by the authorities. It threatened to derail the fiscal consolidation DPO should an additional financing not be planned. That is why we provided this support using an approach that is consistent with the urgency of the needs and to help fill the residual 2016 budget gap,” said Paul Noumba Um, World Bank Country Director for Chad, Guinea, Mali, Niger and CAR.
Today’s grant brings the total amount of the World Bank DPO to $130 million within a year, and it is in addition to other World Bank Group commitments that support this International Development Association (IDA)* country portfolio. Following the HIPC Completion Point on April 28, the World Bank Board approved in December 2015 a new Country Partnership Framework for Chad for the period 2016-20 as part of an effort to support the country’s five-year Development Plan for 2016-20. This fiscal consolidation operation comes at a turning point for the World Bank Group engagement in this country where the magnitude of the crisis threatens to wipe out all the progress accomplished during the past few years.
The fiscal consolidation DPO was prepared in collaboration with other multilateral financial institutions including the European Union (EU), the African Development Bank (AfDB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
* The World Bank’s International Development Association (IDA), established in 1960, helps the world’s poorest countries by providing grants and low to zero-interest loans for projects and programs that boost economic growth, reduce poverty, and improve poor people’s lives. IDA is one of the largest sources of assistance for the world’s 77 poorest countries, 39 of which are in Africa. Resources from IDA bring positive change to the 1.3 billion people who live in IDA countries. Since 1960, IDA has supported development work in 112 countries. Annual commitments have averaged about $19 billion over the last three years, with about 50 percent going to Africa.
