World Bank supports $150 million for pandemic response and recovery

 The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved a $150 million development policy credit to support Nepal’s resilient recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, protect the most vulnerable, and support sustainable growth.

"Amid the economic and social impacts of the pandemic, our priority is to provide immediate relief to affected populations and support Nepal’s green, resilient, and inclusive recovery," World Bank country director for Maldives, Nepal, and Sri Lanka Faris Hadad-Zervos said.

The Nepal Programmatic Fiscal Policy for Growth, Recovery and Resilience will help strengthen Nepal’s institutions and regulations, including its tax and customs system, debt management, and public capital spending, according to a World Bank press note. "It will also support the immediate health response and help modernise social protection programmes, build access to capital and digital solutions for the private sector, and lay a regulatory foundation for a green recovery."

“The development policy credit supports the government of Nepal’s efforts to address the social and economic impacts of Covid-19 and overcome structural constraints to a resilient economic recovery," senior economist and the World Bank’s Task Team leader for the programme Kene Ezemenari said.

The World Bank, one of the largest sources of funding and knowledge for developing countries, is taking broad, fast action to help developing countries respond to the health, social and economic impacts of Covid-19. It includes $12 billion to help low-and-middle-income countries purchase and distribute Covid-19 vaccines, tests, and treatments, and strengthen vaccination systems. "The financing builds on the broader World Bank Group Covid-19 response, which is helping more than 100 countries strengthen health systems, support the poorest households, and create supportive conditions to maintain livelihoods and jobs for those hit hardest," it adds.