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WB Approves US$9 Million Credit For Armenia

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  • WB Approves US$9 Million Credit For Armenia

    WB APPROVES US$9 MILLION CREDIT FOR ARMENIA

    PanARMENIAN.Net
    17.03.2010 11:17 GMT+04:00

    /PanARMENIAN.Net/ The World Bank's Board of Executive Directors
    today approved a US$9 million credit for the Second Public Sector
    Modernization Project (PSMP II) for Armenia. The project will assist
    the Government of Armenia in its efforts to improve the quality of
    public services by introducing a performance-based pay system and a
    code of conduct for civil servants, and by enhancing public access
    to all available government information.

    "Strengthening governance through improved public service delivery is
    among the priorities for Bank support," said Asad Alam, World Bank
    Regional Director for the South Caucasus. "While some improvements
    have been made in the area of governance and anti-corruption, important
    challenges remain, including in the enforcement of conflict of interest
    legislation pertaining to public officials."

    In the new economic reality brought about by the global economic
    crisis, public administration reform has grown even more important,
    as getting better value from public expenditures and improving public
    services have become a necessity. Ensuring that public service
    provisions do not suffer at a time of tighter fiscal constraints
    requires focused efforts to strengthen performance management.

    "To improve public service delivery, enhancing technology is not
    enough by itself. The most crucial and difficult part is changing
    behavior and organizational culture," added Kathy Lalazarian, head
    of the World Bank team designing the project. "It's important to have
    efficient public services throughout the recovery because - more than
    ever - families are counting on the services the government provides."

    This demanding agenda will be tackled by the PSMP II, as despite
    progress in civil service reform under the ongoing PSMP I,
    policy formulation and implementation functions need additional
    strengthening. The Project will also help build capacity for
    performance management, and will support the Government's efforts to
    bolster the rules regulating conflict of interest in public service
    and improve enforcement.

    PSMP II has three main components. It supports: (i) the design of
    organizational structures in pilot institutions and improvement of
    the management of business processes by streamlining and coordinating
    functions; (ii) making human resource management more effective,
    and enhancing public service ethics and staff performance systems;
    and (iii) complementing and enhancing the electronic governance and
    automation systems to make them accessible to the general public,
    aiming for better service delivery, and more transparency and
    efficiency.

    The IBRD Flexible loan has a maturity of 25 years and a grace period
    of 10 years included.

    Since joining the World Bank in 1992 and IDA in 1993, the commitments
    to Armenia total approximately US$ 1, 318, 7 million.
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