Sudan endorses a development program

Nov 15, 2005 (KHARTOUM) — An agreement was signed Monday night by the Sudanese Government announcing its full endorsement of the Sudan Development Program (SDP), an initiative organised to raise the economic profile of Sudan.

The SDP is a joint venture set up under the London based Development Program umbrella and endorsed by the Sudanese government to promote the country as an economic force and to attract foreign investors. Also, it will give the Sudanese private sector a direct business channel to the global community.

The signing ceremony featured Sudanese Minister of Investment Malik Agar, along with representatives from eight other government ministries.

SDP will organize a Sudan Development Program Summit, which takes place in Dubai on 12-14 February 2006 and will enable interaction between ministers, global commerce and local business, resulting in discussions on how all parties can best contribute to Sudan’s burgeoning economic development.

The ceremony also featured an address by Asif Faiz, Country Manager from the World Bank, who declared the institution’s support for the project.

“The World Bank recently opened its Sudan office for the first time on 30 years and was looking at establishing its own program for Sudan,” he said.

(ST)