World Bank Vice President commends Rwanda's Growth

By The World Bank

KIGALI, Rwanda, January 30, 2012/African Press Organization (APO)/ -- The World Bank Vice President for Sustainable Development, Rachel Kyte has commended the Government of Rwanda's vision and commitment for implementing successful growth-driving policies.

“Rwanda has been a great development success story over the last decade, now as Rwanda builds on that success, making the transition from aid to more investment, we stand ready to support this transformation” said Kyte.

She highlighted the need for the Rwanda Government to continue enhancing Foreign Direct Investment, facilitate public-private partnerships to maximize opportunities from existing growth sectors, and to focus public expenditure on the key bottlenecks for economic growth especially transport and energy. She emphasized that with infrastructure investments that are efficient, realistic, and sustainable, Rwanda will achieve its medium-term growth targets.

Kyte, who wrapped up her three -day visit to Rwanda yesterday, met with the Prime Minister and various senior government officials, representatives of the private sector and the donor community, and visited World Bank-funded projects.

On the field trip to Gatsibo District, the Vice President appreciated sustainable land management and agricultural intensification activities supported by the WB-financed Land Husbandry, Water Harvesting and Hillside Irrigation (LWH) and the third Rural Sector Support projects under the Ministry of Agriculture. In addition to the scale and replicability of the activities supported by these projects, the purposeful design to maximize environmental and socio-economic benefits was remarkable achievement.

In her dialogue with community members present, Kyte said: “Our job in the World Bank is to lend a hand --a hand that can lend you money and which can lend you technical support. However, what makes our job wonderful is when we all step back and watch you --the community--carry out this work and achieve such incredible and sustainable results”.

In Nyagatovu Village, Kyte joined residents in the nationwide community work known as Umuganda and assisted with the construction of a household vegetable garden and participated in the distribution of milk to children under the Government's Milk for the children initiative.

She also visited the Government's low-cost household electricity connection program which the Bank-financed Electricity Access Project intends to scale up.

Kyte has overall responsibilities for the World Bank Group's global work in infrastructure, agriculture, environment, energy, climate change, urban development, and social development, among others. This is her second visit to Rwanda since 2008 when she was Vice President for Business Advisory services at the International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group.

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