Audio

The South Asia External Affairs team has a pilot project to provide broadcast quality audio clips for news organizations and interested parties in a timely manner. 

Afghanistan

World Bank Establishes Investment Credit Facility for Investors in Afghanistan          July 29, 2004
The World Bank today approved a credit to Afghanistan for the financing of a political risk insurance program. The Afghanistan Investment Guarantee Facility (AIGF) will significantly encourage foreign investment in Afghanistan by providing political risk insurance with coverage capacity of up to US$60 million. The World Bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA) will administer the facility.

World Bank Increases Grant Support To Afghanistan                                     July 29, 2004
Nearly half a billion dollars of World Bank commitments to Afghanistan are expected to be in grant funding by June of next year. By then, total commitments from the International Development Association (IDA) are expected to be US$893 million, of which US$456 would be grant funding.  The large proportion of grant funding to Afghanistan recognizes the scale of the challenge facing this nation as it recovers from a 20-year conflict.

World Bank Supports Education in Afghanistan                                     July 29, 2004
A US$35 million grant was approved today by the World Bank to improve access to, and quality of education in Afghanistan. As the country emerges from years of neglect to the sector, good quality education becomes a crucial component of the country’s long-term development strategy.

World Bank Supports Kabul Urban Reconstruction Project                                     July 29, 2004
The Kabul Urban Reconstruction Project will support reconstruction and rehabilitation in some of Kabul's most vulnerable neighborhoods, and, in so doing, help mend the urban fabric of this important city now struggling to accommodate many thousands of returnees.  Creating stable land tenure systems - clear ways for people to property - is essential.  Building capacity in both the
Ministry of Urban Development and Housing (MUHD) and Kabul Municipality is an additional critical component of the project.