The World Bank has committed up to $1.3 billion for Pakistan in the 2009/10 fiscal year and violence in the country will not deter it from continuing its projects, a World Bank official said.
“If everything gets delivered, which we very much expect will be done, we will make commitments of around $1.2 billion to $1.3 billion for the current fiscal year,” Crookes said on Friday.
A commitment is an undertaking to provide a loan but not all loans get disbursed at the same pace.
Crookes said Pakistan was on the right track after taking some tough decisions, such as eliminating subsidies, to put itself in a much more robust position.
Increased insecurity had not affected bank projects, he said.
“Last fiscal year was the most challenging year that Pakistan has ever encountered up to that point,” Crookes said.
“That year, we basically committed, delivered more assistance to Pakistan than the bank has ever done in its history.”
The World Bank made commitments of $1.6 billion in the 2008/09 (July-June) fiscal year.
Pakistan has been fighting a Taliban insurgency and in retaliation Taliban have bombed markets, schools and military and police facilities.
“We have been able to continue doing business driven only by whether or not there was a need in Pakistan,” Crookes said.
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