ADB ups Nepal aid by $280m

KATHMANDU, Aug 5: The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has increased its grant to Nepal by US$280 million for the current fiscal year (2009/10) as compared to grant in the fiscal year 2007/08. A press statement issued by the ADB on Wednesday states that the allocation, blend of concessional loans and grants, will rise to US$538 million from US$258 million. [break]



"This scaling up of ADB´s assistance to Nepal testifies to ADB´s strong commitment to Nepal´s development and poverty reduction efforts," said ADB vice-president of operations Zhao Xiaoyu at the end of his four-day visit to Nepal.



Zhao added that sustaining this level of assistance in the future will largely depend on Nepal´s performance in the areas of macro-economic management, governance and portfolio management.



During the meeting with Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal and other senior government officials, Zhao stressed the importance of staying the course on economic reforms to reduce poverty, addressing other development challenges and working to achieve sustainable economic growth crucial for ongoing peace and stability, states the ADB´s statement.



Zhao also signed a grant agreement with Nepal for the ADB´s US$25.6 million Emergency Flood Damage Rehabilitation Project to help restore economic activity in eastern and far-western Nepal that were devastated by last year´s monsoon floods.

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