Port Vila, Vanuatu, April 1, 2009
—IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, is expanding its advisory and investment operations in Vanuatu to help improve the business environment, increase access to finance for individuals and small businesses, and promote lending to the financial sector and rural areas, said Rachel Kyte, IFC Vice President for Business Advisory Services.
During her first official visit to Vanuatu this week, Kyte met with James Bule, Minister of Trade and Investment, to discuss opportunities and challenges of reforming the country’s business environment. Building up the partnership with the ministry is critical for strengthening Vanuatu’s investment climate.
“IFC is working with the government to improve the business environment and help Vanuatu promote itself as an investment destination,” Kyte said. “At the end of the day, we’re trying to help the country create more jobs—improving investment is a key ingredient for this.”
Kyte met with Minister of Finance Sela Molisa. They discussed the country’s economic circumstances and prospects going forward, including the current and foreseeable impact of the global economic crisis. Kyte also met with representatives from the National Bank of Vanuatu to explore areas of further collaboration.
At a roundtable discussion with members of the public-private sector Doing Business Reform Taskforce and the Vanuatu Investment Promotion Authority, Kyte reinforced IFC’s commitment to supporting a reform process driven by public-private dialogue.
IFC is also committed to helping boost tourism in Vanuatu, and members of the tourism sector were on hand to discuss issues facing the sector. IFC is carrying out a project to identify and measure the impediments to tourism locally.
Vanuatu became a member of IFC in 1981. IFC is providing advisory services in the country on business start-up, public-private dialogue, licensing, credit bureau development, tourism sector diagnosis, investment policy and promotion, and alternative dispute resolution. IFC’s donor partners for advisory services are the governments of Australia, Japan, and New Zealand.
About IFC
IFC, a member of the World Bank Group, creates opportunity for people to escape poverty and improve their lives. We foster sustainable economic growth in developing countries by supporting private sector development, mobilizing private capital, and providing advisory and risk mitigation services to businesses and governments. Our new investments totaled $16.2 billion in fiscal 2008, a 34 percent increase over the previous year. For more information, visit
www.ifc.org
.
