World Bank assists affected countries

AS the coronavirus (Covid-19) reaches more than 60 countries, the World Bank announced an initial US$12 billion (K40.89bil) immediate package to help countries manage the health and economic impact of the outbreak.
The financing is designed to help member countries take effective action to lessen the impact of Covid-19.
Through this fast track package, the World Bank Group will help developing countries strengthen health systems, including better access to health services to safeguard people from the epidemic, strengthen disease surveillance, bolster public health interventions, and work with the private sector to reduce the impact on economies.
Of the US$12bil Covid-19 support package, US$8bil (K27.26bil) is new and on a fast track basis.
This packaged comprises up to US$2.7bil (K9.2bil) new financing from International Bank for Reconstruction and Redevelopment; US$1.3bil (K4.42bil) from International Development Association, complemented by reprioritisation of US$2bil (K6.81bil) of the bank’s existing portfolio; and, US$6bil (K20.44bil) from International Finance Corporation, including US$2bil from existing trade facilities.
The financial package will provide grants and low-interest loans from IDA for low income countries and loans from IBRD for middle income countries, using all of the Bank’s operational instruments with processing accelerated on a fast track basis.