LA PAZ, August 19, 2011.- The World Bank Director for Bolivia, Ecuador, Chile, Peru and Venezuela, Susan Goldmark, will be visiting Bolivia on the 22nd of August to meet with President Evo Morales and other governmental authorities in order to further reiterate the support of the multilateral institution for the government’s developmental agenda.
“We are developing a new country partnership strategy for the next four years so as to consolidate our relationship and give continuity to a process initiated in 2006, when the World Bank wrote off a US$ 1500 million debt to Bolivia”, said Goldmark. “Our current portfolio in Bolivia includes 13 investment projects, amounting to nearly US$ 450 million, which we intend to expand”, she added.
Two loans approved by the World Bank Board in July will be signed.The first is a US$ 40 million loan directed towards the Community Investment in Rural Areas Project (PICAR), which will benefit 100,000 poor farmers, most of which are indigenous. The second is a US$ 39 million loan directed towards the Agricultural Innovation and Services Project (PISA), which will benefit 3 million Bolivians living in rural areas.
Goldmark, a U.S. national, joined the Bank in 1988 as Public Sector Management Specialist for the Africa Region. She has since held several positions as Finance Sector Leader, Private Sector Development and Energy Division Specialist for the Latin American and Caribbean Region. She has also been a key member of the negotiation team for the endorsement of carbon-financing activities through the World Bank. Goldmark also served as Country Director for Nepal from 2007 to 2011, country in which she originally began her career and completed her education.
Before joining the World Bank Group, she worked in a non-governmental agency and as director of a private consultancy specialized on topics of business development in developing countries. Goldmark has a master’s degree from Princeton University and a BA in South Asian Economics and History from Carleton University.
She was appointed World Bank Regional Director for Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela on July 1, 2011.
