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Sofia (pte047/10.03.2003/16:20) - A series of programmatic adjustment loans (PAL) are to help speed up reforms and privatisation in Bulgaria, World Bank country manager Oscar de Bruyn Kops said in an exclusive interview with 'novinite' news.
Kops predicted the PAL programme would bring the share of the private sector to between 70 and 75 per cent of the GDP by 2005. He added that the World Bank (WB) http://www.worldbank.bg was convinced of Bulgaria's commitment toward moving ahead.
According to novinite, the three-year programme is designed to sustain a growth rate of about 4.5 to 5 per cent a year, and will involve lending of 750 million US dollars.
In the interview, Kops said the World Bank programme also "focuses on poverty reduction, improving living standards and support for Bulgaria's move towards EU accession." He added that 60 per cent of the 750m dollars would be issued in the form of PALs in support of the government's economic and social reforms. The rest would flow into investment projects, creating jobs, improved public service delivery, public sector reform and education.
Fighting corruption and promoting a "transparent and accountable government" were also among the project's targets. Kops said: "Although we see clear signs of improvement in the overall corruption level, it ranks very high on the list of concerns".
Commenting on how efficiently WB loans were being applied, Kops said: "Bulgaria has performed well on the implementation of Bank-financed projects. Our portfolio continues to be in good shape."
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