Eurasian Development Bank participated in the Donors’ Conference devoted to the emergency assistance for the Kyrgyz Republic
Almaty, 28th July 2010 – On 27th July in Bishkek the high-level Donors’ conference “Emergency assistance to the Kyrgyz Republic: Reconciliation and Recovery” was held. The conference was chaired by Amangeldy Muraliev, First Deputy Prime Minister of the Kyrgyz Republic and Theodor Ahlers, Director for Strategy and Operations, World Bank. The President of the Kyrgyz Republic Roza Otunbayeva, other high-ranking officials of the Republic, as well as delegations from 26 countries and over 20 international organizations, including the United Nations (UN), the World Bank (WB), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the European Bank of Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) and the Asian Development Bank (ADB) also participated. On 28th of July under the auspices of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) a special meeting was held to review plans for the reconstruction of destroyed housing. President Otunbayeva and other high-ranking government officials attended this meeting as well. Eurasian Development Bank was represented in both meetings by Sergei I. Shatalov, Managing Director of the EurAsEC Anti-crisis Fund.
The international community expressed its strong commitment to assist the Kyrgyz Republic deal with the aftermath of ethnic conflicts that engulfed the South in June. At the meeting on 27th of July, Joint Economic Assessment of the WB, IMF and ADB was presented. It was prepared with the active participation of experts from EDB, UN and other organizations. This report assesses the reconstruction needs of the affected regions as well as pledges of a large group of international donors to provide financial support.
In her speech on 27th July, President Otunbayeva highlighted that peace and stability in the Kyrgyz Republic are vital not only for the country itself, but also for its partners and for the whole region of Central Asia. She also mentioned the importance of strengthening democracy, continuous fight against corruption, protection of property rights and the rule of law, and the equality of all before the law as the a basis for starting the transition to peace and understanding. The President pledged to ensure transparency and equity in the allocation of donor funds.
In support of the Government’s reconstruction program, the donors pledged on 27th of July to provide over the next 30 months a total of US$1.1 billion.
The Government of the Kyrgyz Republic committed to exercise tight controls over public finances so that essential public services and payments are maintained and are targeted to those most in need. A substantial part of donor funding will be directed to social sectors, as well as to the repair of essential infrastructure, power transmission lines andgeneration installations, to ensure the welfare of the refugees and other vulnerable social groups during winter. Donor funding will support the rehabilitation of public buildings so that government services continue uninterrupted, and will help to secure food security. Donor funds will also be used to provide funding for farmers for harvesting, rebuilding their connections to the markets and exporting agricultural produce.
Non-governmental organizations that attended the conference have highlighted the importance of wide consultations with the affected population, to ensure an appropriate response to their needs, and transparency in spending donor funds.
“The Eurasian Development Bank actively participates in the formulation of the Kyrgyz Republic’s reconstruction strategy - noted the ACF Managing Director Shatalov - “the Government of the Kyrgyz Republic as well as its international development partners expect that EDB as the Manager of the ACF’s resources will become one of the main donors in supporting the country’s social and economic recovery.
Additional Information
Eurasian development bank is an international finance organization established in 2006 by Russia and Kazakhstan in January 2006 in order to foster the development of market economies of its member states, sustainable economic growth and the expansion of mutual trade and economic ties. Statutory capital of the Bank now exceeds US$1.5 billion. As of today, member states of the Bank are Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Russia and Tajikistan.
The EurAsEC Anti-crisis Fund (ACF) of US$8.513 billion was established on 9 June 2009 by the Governments of Armenia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyz Republic, Russia and Tajikistan. The ACF mission is to assist its member states overcome the implications of the global financial crisis, ensure economic and financial stability in these countries, and to foster integration in the region. The member states appointed the EDB manager of the ACF and entered into an agreement with the Bank to that effect.