•BANK of Zambia governor Micheal Gondwe (centre) with World Bank country director Kundhavi Kadiresan (right) and World Bank programme leader Praveen Kumar (left) during the launch of the Fourth Zambia Economic Brief at Lusaka’s Hotel Inter-Continental on Wednesday. Picture by KENNEDY MUPESENI

By MAIMBOLWA MULIKELELA –

THE World Bank has approved a US$75 million credit facility towards the rehabilitation of the Kariba Dam.

 A further US$25 million grant from Sweden had also been approved for the same project.

World Bank vice president for Africa Makhtar Diop said in a statement issued yesterday that the Bank’s board of executive directors had approved the US$75million International Development Association (IDA) credit and the US$25million from Sweden.

“Rehabilitation of the Kariba Dam is an important component of the World Bank’s larger programme for boosting energy security in southern Africa. There is much more to be done in reaching that goal, but today marks an important milestone in securing the Kariba dam for the coming decades,” said Mr Diop said.

Commenting on the funding, Finance ministers of Zambia and Zimbabwe, Alexander Chikwanda and Patrick Chinama respectively, said the Kariba Dam was woven into the social and economic lives of the two peoples.

They welcomed the World Bank and Sweden’s financial injection into the rehabilitation of the Kariba Dam.

“We remain strongly committed to our continued partnership in ensuring that the benefits of regional cooperation flow directly to the people of our countries.

“We welcome the World Bank’s and Government of Sweden’s financing for the urgently needed rehabilitation works at Kariba. Our top priority is to ensure the dam continues to meet international safety standards,” they said.

Cross-border energy trade made possible by the Kariba Dam Hydro-Electric Scheme was central to increasing access to electricity and lowering costs for millions of people.

The project supports the development strategy of the Southern Africa Power Pool, a framework established in 1995 to provide regional solutions to electricity generation for the member states of the Southern Africa Development Community.

World Bank country director for Zambia, Zimbabwe and Malawi, Kundhavi Kadiresan said the project financing demonstrated the power of perseverance and cooperation between governments and development partners.

“This project is a testimony to the power of perseverance and cooperation between ghtgovernments and development partners and the World Bank is pleased to have played an important role in getting us here.

We remain deeply committed to ensuring that the same spirit of cooperation remains the hallmark during project implementation,” she said.