Bhutan finance ministry received Nu 1.3B from the World Bank yesterday

In a move that will help government strengthen and develop its institutions and rural infrastructure, among others, the finance ministry received Nu 1.3B from the World Bank yesterday.

The fund is more of a concessional loan than commercial borrowing.

Finance minister Wangdi Norbu said the concessional loan is not related to any specific project, but can be used for different types of expenditure, like the building of schools, hospitals and other capital assets.

“However, the amount cannot be utilised in meeting recurrent expenditure,” he said, adding that government’s establishment cost will have to be met from internal revenue.

Of the total, Nu 1,086M will be channeled towards the development policy credit, which will strengthen government institutions to promote efficiency and effectiveness through sound fiscal and public financial management.

The rest of the amount will be used for additional financing of the decentralised rural development project, targeted at strengthening local government administration through capacity building at a local level.

Bhutan's World Bank representative, Mark LaPrairie said the rural development project was also aimed at providing increased access to market, farm roads and in increasing agriculture productivity of cash crops.

“It will also focus on rural infrastructure development, support improved technologies and in institutional strengthening of the renewable natural resources sectors,” he said.

The original amount, negotiated some time in March 2005, was at USD 7M.

During World Bank's managing director Dr Ngozi Okonjo-lweala’s visit last year, Bhutan was assured of receiving concessionary loans until 2014, despite the per capita income disqualifying the country from receiving the assistance.

Lyonpo Wangdi Norbu said such type of concessionary loans will soon become less common, as the country gradually sees a domestic growth and develops, in terms of the per capita income.

Meanwhile, the signing of the financing agreement was postponed, following the High Court ruling on constitutional validity of receiving loans, that was considered a money bill and demanded its approval through the parliament.

But the Supreme Court had clarified that the government could raise loans and make grants in accordance to the Public Finance Act.

The agreement signing between the finance minister Wangdi Norbu and World Bank’s vice president Isabel Guerrero yesterday also marked the opening of the bank’s new office in Thimphu.

Officials said it will facilitate the bank to work closely with different branches of the government.

World Bank remains one of Bhutan’s major development partners starting 1983. Since then, it has financed over 13 loan projects amounting to USD 150.127M and 20 grant projects amounting to USD 62.970M.

Bhutan Observed World AIDS Day

As the nation observed World AIDS Day yesterday in Zhemgang, health officials said that harmful practices in the village like ear and nose piercing with the same sharpened bamboo sticks, using the same scissors to cut hair, and the same razor blade to cut skin and suck out blood to cure headaches need to be done away with.

“Despite a multi-sectoral task force functioning in the dzongkhag, all sections of people, including students and civil servants, don’t have clear knowledge on HIV/AIDS,” said the public health director Dr Ugyen Dophu, after the question-answer session, where students and the public of Zhemgang asked various basic questions on HIV/AIDS. “Ignorance is a big challenge in Zhemgang dzongkhag.”

Her Majesty the Queen Mother, Ashi Sangay Choden Wangchuck, told the gathering of about 900 people that December 1 is the day observed to show compassion to all HIV positive patients and commit to prevent the disease. “It’s not important to know who is infected with HIV/AIDs, but what’s important is to know how to protect from infection,” she said, adding that those infected should not spread it to others.

Of the 33 million people infected with HIV/AIDS around the world, 185 are in Bhutan.

According to Dr Ugyen Dophu, anti retroviral drugs (ARD), given to HIV/AIDS patients, are only available in the three referral hospitals of Gelephu, Mongar and Thimphu. “When HIV positive people come for the CD4 count (a CD4 count below 200 indicates serious immune damage), their blood is sent to any of the referral hospitals,” he said. “The patient has to go to the referral hospital in the initial phase, but the hospital decides whether he needs ARD or not.”

Referral hospitals send patients, along with medicines, to the hospital that is nearer to the patient’s place of residence. “The health staff in the locality will have to advise the patients monthly as the drug is very toxic,” Dr Ugyen Dophu explained. “With limited budget, the government can’t spread anti retroviral drugs to every district hospital, but training the health staff would be best for good access.”

The UN resident coordinator, Ms Claire Van der Vaeren said that the UN is committed to support the government in halting the HIV epidemic, by working together and making changes together. “It means change from exclusion to inclusion, from indifference to responsibility and from fear to hope.”

Chimi Lhadon, 40, from Tali village, told Kuensel that, in her village, the moment people talk about an HIV/AIDS patient, they directly link it to people of loose morals. “Today I knew that AIDS can also be incidentally transmitted through blood route,” the mother of four said, adding that she will go and advise her children to be careful.

Zhemgang dzongkhag has about eight HIV/AIDS patients.

Source: Kuenselonline