Joint World Bank Mission in visit
The Ministry of Finance is currently hosting a Joint World Bank Mission comprising the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), the International Development Association (IDA) and the International Financial Corporation (IFC) - the private sector arm of the Bank.
In a statement issued yesterday, the ministry said the visit, which runs from October 1st to October 9th, is for the initiation of discussions on the second tranche of the Programmatic Fiscal and Financial Stability Development Credit (DPC) and to continue engagements with government officials and the wider stakeholder community on the preparation of a Systematic Country Diagnostic assessment for Guyana. “The first tranche was successfully negotiated earlier this year and disbursed to Guyana, [and] the Second DPC will be negotiated and disbursed in 2019,” it explained.
The Systematic Country Diagnostic Assessment, the ministry noted, is a precursor to developing a full Country Engagement Strategy that will inform the Bank’s future programming for Guyana within the next investment cycle of the Bank (IDA 19).
According to the ministry, the visit signals the Bank’s continued confidence in the macroeconomic stability of the economy and growing interest in Guyana’s Development Agenda, while the inclusion of the IFC underscores the importance government has placed on ensuring that the new World Bank partnership framework incorporates policies and measures to support the development of a vibrant private sector that is geared to benefit from, and to complement the emerging oil and gas sector.
It added that during its engagement with Minister of Finance Winston Jordan and his technical team, the Bank commended the ministry for the high standard of Guyana’s Green Paper on the Sovereign Wealth Fund (SWF) and committed to providing more technical guidance and support as Guyana moves towards the completion of the draft SWF Legislation. In this regard, the draft SWF Act was shared with the Bank to solicit its technical review and advice given its vast experience with such legislation in oil producing nations.
The Mission is being led by Galina Sotirova, Country Manager for Guyana with responsibilities for the Caribbean Country Management Unit, and includes Judith Green, Principal Investment Officer of the IFC, and eight other senior technical experts, including experts in the area of oil and gas.