World Bank may allocate $873 million in financial support to Armenia

PanARMENIAN.Net - A new Country Partnership Strategy (CPS) for the Republic of Armenia for 2014-2017 was discussed Thursday, November 7 by the World Bank Group’s Board of Executive Directors. The four-year strategy is a framework document outlining the World Bank Group’s support to the country, WB Yerevan Office press service reported.

The strategy is anchored in the Armenia Development Strategy 2025 and places private sector-led job creation at the center of the World Bank Group’s response. It also stresses the need for improvement of labor productivity in the agricultural sector that supports the livelihood of over one million of the rural population, and would lead to higher economic growth, shared prosperity, and faster poverty reduction in both urban and rural areas. The strategy proposes financial support of $873 million over the next four years, with access to the International Development Association (IDA), International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), and International Finance Corporation (IFC) funding.

”This Country Partnership Strategy aims to support private sector-led job creation to underpin Armenia’s development”, said Henry Kerali, World Bank Regional Director for the South Caucasus. “It aims to support Armenia’s development by strengthening competitiveness of the economy through the implementation of critical reforms that will help boost job creation, and by ensuring more efficient and equitable delivery of social services.”