HARARE - The African Development Bank (AfDB) has granted Zimbabwe a $24,7 million loan to support the country’s capacity building projects.

The continental bank yesterday said the grant was targeted at improving public finance and economic management, thereby contributing to macroeconomic stability and poverty reduction.

“The specific objective is to strengthen the capacity of Zimbabwe’s key institutions responsible for economic and public finance management reforms, monitoring and evaluation, and improved participation of the private sector in economic development,” AfDB said.

While financially troubled Zimbabwe has failed to repay its debts to the lending institution — in excess of $300 million — AfDB has continued to bail out the country.

Recently, AfDB extended a $9 million grant to fund Zimbabwe’s Urgent Water Supply and Sanitation Rehabilitation project aimed at increasing the reliability, quality and availability of water.

The latest loan facility comes a few months after the International Monetary Fund relaxed most restrictions on technical assistance to Zimbabwe, paving way for future staff-monitored programmes and full normalisation of relations.

In December last year, at its weekly meeting in Tunis, AfDB directors approved over $107 million in loans and grants to finance projects in Zimbabwe, Nacala Corridor in Mozambique and the integration of payments systems in East Africa.

The funds would be used to enhance capacity for public financial management, including debt management and revenue collection. - Business Writer