Events

MINSK, 16 September (BelTA) – The government of Belarus is interested in the World Bank’s suggestions concerning systemic economic reforms, Belarusian Prime Minister Mikhail Myasnikovich said as he met with the World Bank's Vice President for Europe and Central Asia (ECA) Laura Tuck on 16 September, BelTA has learned.

Mikhail Myasnikovich suggested discussing systemic reforms at the meeting. “We are really building a new, open economy. In this situation your recommendations would come in handy and would be very useful for us,” the Belarusian head of government said.

Belarus and the World Bank Group have been fruitfully working on a great number of projects. The Belarusian government is satisfied with the cooperation dynamics. The priority cooperation projects include infrastructure projects, like road construction, water supply and water disposal. These projects are relevant and important for the country’s image. Mikhail Myasnikovich expressed confidence that the cooperation in this field will gain momentum.

The head of government suggested that the World Bank take part in the Children of Belarus program, as the country pays much attention to the support of children and the youth and to resolving demographic problems. Besides, the World Bank was invited to take part in the Pripyat Polesie development program. This could be a regional project of Belarus, Ukraine and Poland, as the three states have their interests in Polesie.

Responding to the cooperation proposals, the World Bank's Vice President Laura Tuck noted that “Belarus needs to undertake a number of decisive measures in economy, so that the economic growth would maintain momentum in the subsequent years in the face of the complicated external environment”. She added that the World Bank experts are happy to work with Belarus, in particular on the Belarus economic development strategy until 2030.

Laura Tuck welcomed the expansion of the Belarus-World Bank cooperation in recent years. The country’s achievements in promoting human capital are impressive. Besides exploring cooperation opportunities in more fields, the parties discuss promising cooperation projects in education, SME promotion and management of public funds.

This is Laura Tuck’s first official visit to Belarus after she was appointed World Bank’s Vice President in September 2013. Laura Tuck will stay in Belarus until 17 September.

Since Belarus joined the World Bank in 1992, the country has borrowed a total of $1.14 billion from the bank. Besides, the total amount of grants is estimated at $25 million. At present, the investment portfolio of the World Bank in Belarus features five projects totaling $648 million.