Conakry, Guinea, February 9, 2011
— IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is targeting new investments and advisory services in Guinea to help the private sector become a main catalyst for development in the country. During a visit to the country by Vice President Thierry Tanoh, regional Director Yolande Duhem, and Country Manager Mary-Jean Lindile Moyo encouraged IFC partnerships that can maximize development results. The visit included a meeting with the newly elected President of Guinea, Alpha Condé.
“IFC sees a new day for Guinea. We are committed to working with government and business leaders to assess needs to determine ways in which we may work more closely together on projects that will have the highest development impact,” said Thierry Tanoh, IFC Vice President for Sub-Saharan Africa and Western Europe. “Guinea’s resources offer potential for contributing to development by catalyzing increased private sector investment in key sectors.”
A country with enormous potential, Guinea boasts one-third of the world’s reserves of bauxite. IFC currently has investments of almost $70 million in the country primarily in the mining sector. The mining sector is responsible for the largest portion of the country’s foreign direct investment, and IFC sees the potential for the country’s agribusiness and infrastructure sectors to spur development further.
“Improving the investment climate is crucial to the success of private sector businesses in Guinea,” said IFC Director for West and Central Africa, Yolande Duhem. “IFC Advisory Services will continue its efforts to work with the Government on further reforms and enable small businesses to receive the tools necessary to grow their businesses.”
IFC Advisory Services is working with Guinea Alumina Corporation and Rio Tinto Simfer to develop a pool of small businesses with the capacity to deliver goods and services at the standards required by Guinea’s burgeoning mining sector while at the same time making the processes and procedures of the mining sector more accessible to small businesses. To date, IFC has provided pre-tender training and coaching to over 40 small and medium-sized enterprises, added over 600 to the IFC SME database, and identified potential market opportunities for them in transport, earthworks, community infrastructure, construction and uniform manufacturing.
Four local consulting firms have also been selected to become IFC Business Edge™ franchises making quality management training accessible to Guinean small businesses on the commercial market.
In addition to meetings with government ministers in Conakry, Tanoh and Duhem discussed new and continued partnerships with members of the private sector.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in developing countries. We create opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We do so by providing financing to help businesses employ more people and supply essential services, by mobilizing capital from others, and by delivering advisory services to ensure sustainable development. In a time of global economic uncertainty, our new investments climbed to a record $18 billion in fiscal 2010. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
