World Bank’s South Asia region VP acknowledges Pakistan’s efforts

Meets several officials to discuss reform acceleration, revenue mobilisation.

ISLAMABAD: Annette Dixon, the new vice president of the World Bank (WB) Group’s South Asia Region, said she appreciated Pakistan’s progress in areas of reforms and reinforced the global lender’s stance of helping the country in implementing them.

Dixon said this during her visit to Pakistan, which concludes today (Saturday).

According to a press release, Dixon congratulated the government on economic stabilisation on the back of a successful implementation of IMF’s programme, accessing IBRD loans of $500 million per annum for the next four years.

She also acknowledged the government’s initial implementation of reform actions. “The WB stands ready to assist the government’s efforts to deepen reform acceleration, reduce poverty and build shared prosperity.” She added that challenges like energy, revenue mobilisation and education need to be addressed as well.

Dixon also discussed the government’s emergency response to the 2014 floods and the return of the internally displaced persons in FATA, and assured the speedy delivery of the WB Group’s support this fiscal year.  She also highlighted the need to invest in human development, particularly in education. “Increased revenue mobilisation will enable the government to expand its investment in social development and infrastructure,” she said.

Dixon welcomed the government initiatives for enhancing Pakistan’s regional economic cooperation and acknowledged the progress made in implementation of the Central Asia-South Asia initiative (CASA1000). She reiterated the WB’s support for broadening the regional connectivity of Pakistan and its neighbours toward a more integrated regional energy market.

Dixon was keenly interested in the technology based registration and verification systems during her visit to a BISP beneficiary registration centre in Lahore.

Dixon participated in a roundtable discussion on financial inclusion along with Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and State Bank of Pakistan Governor Ashraf Mahmood Wathra, and welcomed the invitation of the governor to the WB to support the implementation of the National Financial Inclusion Strategy, which aims to provide access to finance to at least half of the adult population by 2020.

Dixon also met the Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and acknowledged WB’s strong development partnership with the province.

Dixon also assured WB’s continued assistance for Balochistan’s development particularly in education for girls, nutrition, immunisation, management of water resources, and the minerals sector.

The official held several meetings in Islamabad and Lahore with representatives of diplomatic missions, development agencies, academia, think-tanks, private sector and civil society.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 4^th, 2015.

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