VIENNA, June 6 (KUNA) -- The OPEC Fund for International Development (OFID)'s Governing Board approved a plan to allocate over USD 233 million in loans and grants to finance development projects in 17 developing countries.
"Our strategic focus continues to highlight the interdependency of the energy-water-food nexus, supported by the transportation sector," OFID Director-General Suleiman J Al-Herbish said in statement following the conclusion of the 155th Session of the Governing Board.
"This is our priority moving forward." He noted that the loans worth USD 118 million will be provided to public sector in seven countries to finance a number of strategic development and infrastructure projects. Under OFID's private sector facility, six financing facilities totaling over USD 98 million were approved to co-finance sustainability energy schemes in Egypt.
Under OFID's trade finance facility, USD 15 million was approved to help support SMEs and finance international trade activities in Armenia.
The governing board also approved four grants totaling USD 2.3 million to four organizations, distributed as follows: USD500,000 for the International Center for Biosaline Agriculture (ICBA) o improve small-scale irrigation technologies and introduce on-farm water management practices with a view to increasing agricultural productivity and enhancing food security in Burkina Faso, Niger, Mali and Senegal; and USD 400,000 for the Hilfswerk organization, Austria, to duce maternal-child mortality in rural areas in 12 districts in Sofala province, Mozambique.
The grants also included USD 800,000 for the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) to enhance host communities' resilience in Jordan and Lebanon by constructing additional infrastructure and providing necessary equipment, as well as improving waste management facilities in areas where Syrian refugees reside and USD 600,000 for the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) to support the third phase of the "Southern Africa Solar Training and Demonstration Initiative" which aims at reducing energy poverty by improving access to renewable energy; specifically solar thermal solutions in Lesotho, Mozambique, and Zimbabwe. (end) amg.ibi