David Malpass, President of the World Bank Group, will travel to Togo on Friday for a 48-hour visit, the Savoir News Agency learned on Tuesday from official sources.
He will be accompanied by Ousmane Diagana (Vice-President of the World Bank for West and Central Africa), and by Sergio Pimenta (Vice-President of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) for Africa).
Several topics will be on the menu of this trip: strengthening security and peace, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, food security, access to energy and the importance of education, among other regional and global priorities.
Mr. Malpass will discuss the areas of strategic intervention in the country with the Togolese Head of State Faure Gnassingbé as well as the partners.
“The exchanges will focus on education, agriculture, including the emergency response to food insecurity in West Africa, digital development and social protection,” said a statement from the World Bank.
President Malpass will also discuss “the efforts made to strengthen resilience and inclusive growth in the countries of the Gulf of Guinea”.
The President of the World Bank Group will first pass through Niger from March 29 to 31, before going to Togo.
“Promoting security and peace in the region, strengthening education and building resilience to address the crippling climate costs are critical to the region’s growth and development. I am delighted with these visits to Niger and Togo, which will give us the opportunity to discuss these crucial subjects as well as the additional support that the World Bank Group can provide in these areas,” Mr. Malpass.
It should be noted that the World Bank is a long-standing partner of West and Central Africa. Between April 2020 and the end of its last fiscal year ending June 30, 2022, the World Bank committed an unprecedented aggregate amount of $28.5 billion for 234 projects in priority sectors. The International Finance Corporation (IFC), for its part, invested $9.4 billion in 36 African countries in fiscal year 2022, its largest annual commitment to the continent.
It should be noted that the partnership between Togo and the World Bank Group has been dynamic in recent years with the support and financing of priority projects and structural reforms for enhanced socio-economic development. The current commitment of the World Bank in Togo represents 896 million dollars spread over 17 projects including 9 national and 8 regional.
As a reminder, from 2018 to 2022, the World Bank portfolio in Togo has experienced a significant increase. It went from $236.8 million to $917.5 million. FIN
Junior AUREL
