South Sudan and World Bank reach cooperation agreement
By James Gatdet Dak
June 25, 2008 (JUBA) – The Southern Sudan Reconstruction and Development Fund (SSRDF) and the World Bank have agreed on collaborative working arrangements between the two institutions in a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that sets out how they should jointly manage donors’ funds for development projects in Southern Sudan.
In a Wednesday’s joint meeting of Chairpersons of Commissions and Chambers chaired by the Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar Teny, the SSRDF’s Chairperson, Dr. David Nailo Mayo explained that the MoU intends to improve the Government of Southern Sudan/World Bank response and implementation capacity of both organizations by setting forth the division of responsibilities.
He added that the MoU, which is supposed to come into effect on July 1, 2008, would avoid duplication and parallel operations in the transitional period and maximize the respective strengths and comparative advantages of each.
In accordance with the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) signed in January 2005, an institution called the ‘Multi-Donors Trust Fund (MDTF)’ was created to manage donors’ funds, banked in the World Bank, on behalf of the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) during a transitional period and until a time when GoSS should have developed its capacity and be able to manage such funds by itself.
For the last three years, however, GoSS institutions that have MDTF-funded projects complain that the World Bank applies a lot of bureaucracy in releasing funds and that the matter results in failure to implement a number of development projects in Southern Sudan.
The World Bank argued that relevant institutions of the Government of Southern Sudan needed to meet standards set by the Bank and to follow its procedures before they could receive the money.
In the MoU, the two institutions have agreed that the Southern Sudan Reconstruction and Development Fund (SSRDF) will chair the technical committee managing the MDTF while the World Bank will continue to be the banker of such funds.
They also agreed that the SSRDF will manage the projects funded by the MDTF and disburse the funds and that the World Bank would be required to release funds on quarterly basis to SSRDF accounts.
SSRDF would account for money spent before being replenished.
Projects that are supposed to be supported by the donors’ funds include development of physical infrastructure, promotion of agriculture and private sector development, institutional infrastructure development for better governance including the enhancement of Law and Order.
The MDTF would also support restoration of peace, harmony and facilitating of safe return and re-integration of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and refugees.
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Lual Dennis Deng Garang
South Sudan and World Bank reach cooperation agreement
i thinks that will be a very nice work, lack of qualify staffs who can be able to control the funds in south sudan has become the problem. it is not because south sudan can not manage its resources/funds but people are not trusth, want they are given a chance, they turn and use the public funds for self serving so that they can satisfy their needs. Dr Machar, we are not expecting you to give money to your friend Joseph Kony of LRA, Do the best to save some other guys who are poor since you know that proverty is very high in southern Sudan.we are looking forward for the development rather than to help the enemy who never one day appreciated what you do to them, kony refuse to sign the FPA and that mean he is no long interesting in your relationship, leave him a lone