ISLAMABAD: It is anticipated that the World Bank would give Pakistan more than $2 billion a year for five years as part of its next Country Partnership Strategy (CPS), which is probably going to be finalized by December.
In addition to confirming that only 104 bank accounts have been opened in Balochistan two years after the devastating floods in 2022—as opposed to an estimated 250,000–280,000 potential beneficiaries of the $213 million (roughly Rs60bn) Integrated Flood Resilience and Adaptation Project—a World Bank team led by Country Director Najy Benhassine made this indication to journalists on Tuesday.
Mr. Najy stated that he did not have precise information regarding allocations for the next CPF, which would be finalized in December, but he hoped they would stay roughly the same as in the current 2022–26 CPF in response to a question concerning the World Bank’s concessional lending window to Pakistan under the International Development Assistance (IDA).
As part of the continuing five-year CPF, the bank offers approximately $2 billion in annual financing to Pakistan. This financing includes commercial loans under its International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) to middle-income and creditworthy low-income country governments.
While there were challenging circumstances in many nations and different levels of IDA commitment, according to Mr. Najy, the World Bank has established six goals as part of the long-term plan for CPS 2025–2030. Prioritizing measures to combat stunting of children should come first, then education to tackle the issue of out-of-school youth and climate resilience in the water and agriculture sectors.
Other priority include decarbonisation, particularly in hydroelectric power and air quality improvement in Punjab, followed by fiscal reforms for macroeconomic stability and fiscal inclusion and then enhancing the business environment for the private sector expansion.
In response to a question regarding recent criticism regarding inadequate funding commitments, low disbursements, and the repurposing of previous project financing for flood reconstruction and rehabilitation from Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Mr. Najy acknowledged that the financial requirements of different nations in such natural disasters were enormous and that there were few special funding windows available to deploy funds for rehabilitation right away.
“I agree that low-income countries should be able to quickly deploy concessional funds, and that this should not come at the expense of current investments in health, education, and the social sector,” he stated. He also noted that Pakistan’s initial flood damage estimates were roughly accurate and were later revised by international partners such as the World Bank and UN agencies.
The World Bank team was quite complimentary about the speed at which the $1.3 billion post-flood projects in Sindh were being implemented, but things did not seem to be going well in Balochistan, which is expected to be the second most impacted province by the floods in 2022. But the bank authorities also mentioned that new mechanisms had been put in place to support increasing investments and payouts for restoration and rehabilitation projects.