The African Development Bank on Wednesday signed a €6.18 million grant in budgetary support to the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Principe.

The agreement was signed at the Bank's headquarters in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, by Osvaldo Vaz, Minister of Planning, Finance and the Blue Economy of São Tomé and Principe and by Khaled Sherif, Vice President for regional development, integration and service delivery.

The Bank approved the budgetary support to São Tomé and Principe on 8 January 2020 under its programme to support economic reform and the energy sector.

Minister Vaz welcomed the financial support of the Bank, hailing the "historic nature of this grant that will be used to improve the quality of life for the people of São Tomé."

Sherif said the Government of São Tomé had entered the implementation phase of its 3rd Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper (PRSP III) and had set ambitious objectives for macroeconomic stabilization, growth and the fight against poverty, supported by other partners such as the IMF and World Bank.

"The African Development Bank is pleased to see that its support was instrumental in the approval of the IMF credit facilitation programme in October 2019," Sherif said.

The São Tomé and Principe delegation included the Governor of the Bank of São Tomé and Principe, Americo Barros, and the Budget Director, Wagner Fernandes.

The Bank is supporting the country's agenda for sustainable economic growth and poverty reduction with a twin-track approach: reform of public finance management and the business climate, and the promotion of efficient and sustainable energy supplies.

The African Development Bank began its activities in São Tomé and Principe in 1978 and has funded some 30 programmes since then, totalling over $156 million. It has provided support in many sectors, including agriculture, economic reform and social affairs.

Contact:

Amadou Mansour Diouf, Communication and External Relations Department, African Development Bank