World Bank Group Managing Director to Visit the DRC

The Managing Director of the World Bank Group, Ms. Sri Mulyani Indrawati, will travel to the Democratic Republic of Congo from May 10 to 12, 2015.  While in the country, she will meet with President Joseph Kabila Kabange, Prime Minister Matata Ponyo, and key members of the Congolese Government on the long-term development prospects for the DRC as well as progress related to the Great Lakes Regional Initiative.

Ms. Indrawati’s visit confirms the continued support of the World Bank Group for this regional initiative, which was launched after the joint visit of World Bank President Jim Yong Kim and United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon in May 2013.

The Great Lakes Regional Initiative is aimed at supporting the peace agreement signed in February 2013 by 11 countries. The World Bank Group announced US$1 billion to support the initiative through various programs to help the countries of the region improve their health and education services, expand cross-border trade, and finance hydroelectric projects.

Ms. Indrawati will also travel to Goma to meet with the provincial authorities. She will visit the Goma International airport, which recently received World Bank IDA funding under the Goma Airport Safety Improvement Project, and the Heal Africa Hospital, supported by the Great Lakes Emergency Sexual and Gender-Based Violence and Women’s Health Project. She will also visit the HERI primary school, financed by the Eastern Region Stabilization and Peace-Building Project (STEP). These projects all demonstrate the commitment of the World Bank Group to assist with peace-building efforts in the sub-Region.

This visit will allow the Managing Director of the World Bank Group not only to gauge the progress made with the Great Lakes Regional initiative in the DRC but also to assess the challenges yet to be tackled.

The World Bank Group is one of the main partners of the DRC. Its portfolio includes 25 current projects amounting to US$3.5 billion, including two regional projects totaling US$1.14 billion. It supports mainly projects related to infrastructure rehabilitation (roads, railway, potable water, and electricity); public finance management governance in four provinces and the mining sector; public enterprise reform and improvement of the business climate; health and education infrastructure rehabilitation as well as health, education, and social protection service improvements; national parks and forest management; and agriculture.