(Ecofin Agency) - The World Bank approved $147.9 million consisting equally of a loan and a grant from the International Development Association (IDA) to improve public financial management and health sector management and promote sustainable growth in Burkina Faso.

This financing, the second of a series of three under the Development Policy Financing (DPF), will support the government’s reforms featured in the 2016-20 National Economic and Social Development Plan and help fight the coronavirus pandemic.

It seeks to improve the mobilization of domestic revenues and rationalize public spending; strengthen the health system and social services, boost productivity, and reduce the environmental impact of livestock and mining activities.

According to Maimouna Fam, World Bank's Country Manager for Burkina Faso, “this program provides decisive support to cushion the economic and health consequences of the pandemic. With the DPF, the World Bank will help strengthen Burkina Faso's resilience at a time when the country is facing serious economic, health, and humanitarian challenges, compounded by the current health crisis.”

The latest official data reports a total of 891 positive cases of covid-19 in Burkina Faso, with 53 deaths and 765 recoveries.

André Chadrak