WASHINGTON, 4 December 2014 –The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a US$70 million International Development Association (IDA)* credit to support Côte d’Ivoire’s efforts to strengthen public administration and facilitate private-sector growth, improve governance and establish a more conducive business climate to reduce extreme poverty and promote shared prosperity.
The Second Poverty Reduction Support Credit (PRSC-2) is the second in a programmatic series of three development policy operations (DPOs) designed to assist Côte d’Ivoire in attaining its stated objective of becoming an emerging market by 2020.
Poor governance and periods of conflict have long constrained economic growth in Côte d’Ivoire, with the most recent disruption following the presidential election of November 2010 and lasting until April 2011.
“Since the end of the crisis, the country has embarked on an ambitious and comprehensive reform program aimed at leveraging its considerable endowments of human capital, natural resources, and infrastructure to spur robust, broad-based and sustainable economic growth with the active engagement of the international donor community,” said Ousmane Diagana, World Bank Country Director for Côte d’Ivoire, Burkina Faso, Togo, Benin and Guinea. “The operation will help the government continue progress that has been made in various areas such as improving the business environment and promoting good governance.”
The first PRSC approved by the Bank’s Executive Board on August 30, 2013, reflects the country’s renewed political stability, enhanced security situation, rising civil service capacity, and its return to a normal electoral process. The next presidential election planned in October 2015.
“Like PRSC-1, this operation focuses on areas of heightened importance for Cote d’Ivoire, including (i) strengthening public confidence in government by improving budgetary transparency and the accountability of public officials; (ii) building investor confidence through rapid, highly visible improvements in the business climate; and (iii) boosting economic opportunity by focusing on potential sources of growth and employment, particularly labor-intensive exports” said Volker Treichel, Program leader and co-TTL of the operation.
Samba Ba, Senior Economist and co-TTL said that “The PRSC2 will support the Government’s implementation of a number of policy actions already adopted, including improvement of public procurement processes with a view to reducing sole-source contracting, and clearing the stock of domestic arrears, as well as government’s plans with regard to a single Treasury account, restructuring public banks and reinforcing the financial position of the energy sector. “
Reform measures supported by the operation are expected to have positive direct and indirect impacts on all Ivorian people by spurring more rapid growth and expanding employment and income opportunities. In addition, several prior actions will have indirect positive effects on poverty by enhancing the government’s ability to execute pro-poor spending and implement socially beneficial policies
