ReliefWeb

Vienna, Austria, June 12, 2019. OFID – the OPEC Fund for International Development – has approved more than US$580 million of new funding to benefit developing countries across the globe. The 167th Session of OFID’s Governing Board approved the funding at the organization’s Vienna headquarters.

The public sector loans, amounting to US$387 million, will support the following projects:

Cuba: West Havana Sanitation and Pluvial Drainage. To reduce environmental pollution and improve health indicators and living conditions, benefiting an estimated 73,000 people. US$ 25,000

Egypt: Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Development (MSMED) III. To help create around 33,000 job opportunities and boost self-employment through the extension of small loans to MSMEs and local banks, NGOs and microfinance institutions. US$ 95,000

Ghana: Eastern Corridor Development Program (Phase I). To construct a 40 km road and repair a 24 km stretch to improve domestic / regional trade and stimulate economic development for circa 230,000 people. US$ 20,000

Liberia: Upgrading of Konia-Voinjama Road. To pave a 64 km road in northern Liberia, improving the transport of agricultural goods and increasing food security and incomes for around 43,000 people. US$ 25,000

Mozambique: Temane Transmission Project (TREP / TTP). To install a 563 km transmission system from Temane to the capital Maputo and upgrade / build sub-stations in southern Mozambique. US$ 36,000

Oman: Alsharqiya Expressway Tunnels. To construct two expressway tunnels to improve connections between the north and eastern regions, enhance trade and provide efficient transport for around one million people. US$ 130,000

Rwanda: Rwanda Sustainable Water Supply & Sanitation Program – Phase II. To construct eight water supply systems to serve 14 districts. Access is expected to rise from 30 to nearly 100 percent – improving living standards for approximately 5.4 million people. US$ 20,000

Senegal: Support to Agricultural Development & Rural Entrepreneurship Program - Phase II (PADAER II). To construct infrastructure for circa 437,000 small producers to increase yield and create more jobs – with a focus on women and youth. US$ 10,000

Sierra Leone: Education Sector Support. To reconstruct and rehabilitate four public secondary schools, a teacher training college and a polytechnic to ease overcrowding and accommodate rising enrolments. US$ 20,000

Suriname: Health Facilities Improvement (Supplementary Loan). To cover funding gaps related to a hospital in the capital Paramaribo and primary healthcare facilities across the country serving approximately 300,000 people/year. US$ 6,000

US$157 million was approved under OFID’s private sector, comprising: two facilities totalling €65m (circa US$72m) to strengthen the energy sector in Côte d’Ivoire; US$50m to improve road transport in Kazakhstan; US$25m to support an agricultural group’s investment programs in developing countries (primarily in Africa); and US$10m in support of small- and medium-sized enterprises in Turkmenistan. Under OFID’s Trade Finance Facility, US$25m was approved to support international trade activities in Armenia and US$15m to improve international trade opportunities in Costa Rica.