BUJUMBURA April 1st (ABP) – Burundi Head of State, Mr. Evariste Ndayishimiye, received in audience on Friday March 29 the Director of Regional Operations of the World Bank (WB), Mr. Albert Zeufack.
The objective of that visit was to discuss subjects relating to the state of the portfolio and cooperation between the WB and Burundi, the state of the reforms to be implemented to continue economic progress in Burundi, and the spring meetings of the WB which will take place in two weeks in Washington, indicated the Director of regional operations within the WB.
Regarding the first point, Mr. Zeufack indicated that they have just completed the in-depth review of the WB portfolio in Burundi, specifying that the disbursement rate on projects financed by the WB has improved significantly since then. Last year. To that end, he congratulated the government of Burundi for the efforts undertaken in the implementation of the projects. Mr. Zeucaf announced that they will reach the disbursement rate of more than 30% that year, indicating that at the WB level, they are very happy to see the government’s efforts which are starting to bear fruit.
Concerning the second point, the two personalities discussed the reforms to be implemented in order to stabilize the macro-economic framework and also the structural reforms in the sectors which will allow the country to earn more foreign exchange, stabilize the economy and become even more attractive for harmonious private sector development which creates jobs for the Burundian population, underlined Mr. Zeucaf.
According to the Director of Regional Operations of the WB, they also discussed how Burundi can garner more concessional resources from donations which will make it possible to finance projects like “Merankabandi”, but also projects which are in the areas of energy, education and health for the well-being of the Burundians.