The World Bank announced Wednesday it is prepared to
resume assistance to Myanmar after 25 years. It said it is ready to
provide $85 million in grants for development while also helping to
clear almost $400 million in arrears from old loans.
World
Bank Vice President for East Asia and Pacific Pamela Cox announced the
grants in Yangon as she opened a new World Bank Group office. She said
they could begin by October if the bank’s board approves.
Ms.
Cox and a colleague from the affiliated International Finance Corp. met
with Myanamar President Thein Sein and opposition leader Aung San Suu
Kyi this week. It was the first visit by senior bank officials since the
country began undertaking political and economic reforms last year
after decades of repressive military rule.
Myanmar’s
military junta handed power last year to a nominally civilian
government that has surprised the world with a series of political and
economic reforms, including releasing prominent political prisoners and
allowing Ms. Suu Kyi to contest recent parliamentary by-elections.
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