World Bank Approves Additional $30M in Budget Support to PA

Washington, 07 Syawal 1437/13 July 2016 (MINA) – The World Bank has transferred an amount of about $30 million to the Palestinian Authority from the Palestinian Reform and Development Plan Trust Fund (PRDP-MDTF), a multi-donor budget support mechanism administered by the Bank.

The funds contributed by the governments of Japan and Australia, will help support the urgent budget needs of the Palestinian Authority (PA), providing inter alia support for ongoing macroeconomic and public financial management reforms, WAFA reported.

The World Bank PRDP Trust Fund was established on April 10, 2008, through an agreement signed between the World Bank and the Palestinian Authority. It is a central component of a World Bank’s effort to support the ongoing Palestinian Reform and Development Plan.

Currently, the PRDP-MDTF donors are the governments of Australia, France, Kuwait, Norway, the United Kingdom, and Japan.

With the new tranche release, the PRDP-MDTF will have disbursed about US$1.4 billion.

n June, the World Bank stated that it had contributed a total of $1.025 billion in its Trust Fund for Gaza and the West Bank since its inception in 1993.

By comparison, the United States gives Israel some $3 billion in direct foreign assistance each year.

The Palestinian Authority has struggled under severe financial strain over the years, exacerbated by instances when Israel has withheld taxes it collects on the PA’s behalf.

The World Bank estimated in April that the PA was losing up to $285 million each year under its current economic arrangements with Israel. (T/R07/R01)

Mi’raj Islami News Agency (MINA)