World Bank committed to Pakistan’s long-term development: Martin Raiser

WASHINGTON, Mar 14 (SABAH): Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United States, Sardar Muhammad Masood Khan met World Bank’s Vice President for the South Asia Region Martin Raiser on Tuesday to advance cooperation between Pakistan and the World Bank in the development and climate response sectors.

On October 14th last year, Martin Raiser co-chaired with the United Kingdom a high level round table on how to respond to the impacts of the catastrophic floods in Pakistan on the sidelines of 2022 Annual Meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund. Earlier in September 2022, he visited Pakistan and reaffirmed Bank’s commitment to support people of Pakistan in wake of catastrophic flooding.

The Ambassador thanked World Bank for contributing US$ 2 billion towards flood recovery, rehabilitation and reconstruction during International Conference on Climate Resilient Pakistan in Geneva which would cover support for housing, water and agriculture, social protection and health, among others. “The World Bank has been a resolute development partner of Pakistan,” he said.

Sardar Masood Khan requested the Bank for additional financing and assistance for health related projects, especially to address the issue of water-borne diseases in the flood affected areas. He also solicited Bank’s support in transitioning from adaptation and mitigation to building resilience.

He said that Pakistan was committed to ensuring transparent and effective mechanism for disbursement of funds for the flood affectees. For this purpose, he continued, establishment of International Partners Support Group (IPSG) would soon be announced.

The Ambassador also thanked the Bank for releasing around $1.2 billion of committed funds for various ongoing projects in Pakistan. Smooth flow of funds would ensure timely completion of social sector schemes, he continued.

Martin Raiser said that World Bank remains committed to Pakistan’s long-term development with emphasis on transitioning to renewable energy especially hydro and solar power.

Appreciating the existing cooperation between the Bank and the relevant agencies of Government of Pakistan, Martin Raiser observed that this cooperation would be optimized in the years to come.