Press Release

OFID Governing Board holds 115th Session

58/2006 June 13, 2006, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
Press inquiries:

The Governing Board of the OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID) today convened its 115th Session in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

1. Following adoption of the meeting’s agenda, the Director-General of OFID, Mr. Suleiman J. Al-Herbish, reporting to the Board on OFID’s activities, indicated that on a cumulative basis, and as of the end of April 2006, US$5,628.06 million had been approved in loans to the public sector and US$3,924 million disbursed. These loans, which were extended for project and program financing and balance of payments support, as well as within the framework of the HIPC Initiative, number 1011. All major economic and social sectors have benefited from OFID’s assistance, including agriculture, transportation, health, education, water supply and sewerage, industry, energy, etc.

   The Director-General further indicated that a total of 90 operations had been approved under OFID’s Private Sector Facility. As of the end of April 2006, cumulative commitments through this window totaled US$477 million.

   In addition, OFID has approved a total of 774 grants in support of various activities in the areas of technical assistance, food aid, emergency relief and research. Cumulative grant commitments, as of the end of April 2006, amounted to US$351.78 million, of which US$253.39 million has been disbursed. Moreover, OFID has contributed, in grant form, substantial amounts to the resources of other international development institutions benefiting the South; these contributions total US$971.8 million, most of which has been disbursed. To date, OFID has provided financial assistance to 119 countries in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Middle East and Europe.

2. In today’s session, the Board approved eight public sector project loans worth US$69.82 million and detailed as follows:

   Country	Project	Amount (US$ million)
   Albania	Sustainable Development in Rural Mountain Areas	4.52
   Bosnia and Herzegovina	Rural Enterprise Enhancement	5.95
   Cuba	Havana Province Irrigation Systems Modernization	10.00
   Eritrea	Keren Water Supply	15.00
   Mozambique	Electricity IV	10.40
   Pakistan	Technical Education and Vocational Training	5.25
   Senegal	Bel Air Power Plant	8.70
   Sierra Leone	Bumbuna Hydroelectric Power	10.00
   Total		69.82

   The majority of the above loans has a maturity of 20 years, including a grace period of five years, and carry interest at rates ranging from 1% to 3.25%.

   The projects will be co-financed with the governments of the beneficiary countries and with other donors, including the African Development Bank, the African Development Fund, the Arab Bank for Economic Development in Africa, the governments of Italy and the Netherlands, the International Development Association, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the Islamic Development Bank, the Kuwait Fund for Arab Economic Development and the Saudi Fund for Development.

3. The Board also approved six grants directed at financing activities in the agriculture, education, health and social sectors. They total US$7.9 million (see press releases no. 59/2006-64/2006) and are described below:

   • US$250,000 to expand a vocational training center for women in Bolivia;
   • US$600,000 towards a marine resources management program in the Red Sea;
   • US$250,000 to help villages in Mozambique secure land tenure and boost agricultural production;
   • US$3.5 million for a joint OFID/UNICEF project to scale up activities for the prevention of mother/child HIV/AIDS transmission in sub-Saharan Africa; to be drawn from the HIV/AIDS Special Grant Account;
   • US$350,000 to co-finance the 16th International AIDS Conference; and
   • US$3 million to support civil society organizations and projects that aim at reducing economic deprivation in the West Bank to be drawn from the Special Grant Account for Palestine.

4. The Board also discussed a number of issues relating to OFID’s Private Sector Facility and considered several new investments and pipeline proposals.

5. Also in this session, the Board reviewed financial issues and matters arising from the 27th session of the Ministerial Council.

6. The next Governing Board Session will take place in Vienna, Austria on September 11, 2006.