Ethiopia approves 1.5-billion-USD financial agreements with World Bank's IDA

Addis Ababa: The Ethiopian House of Peoples' Representatives (HoPR), the lower chamber of parliament, on Wednesday endorsed financial agreements involving 1.5 billion US Dollars with the World Bank's International Development Association (IDA), a fund for the poorest countries.

The agreements consist of a 1-billion-Dollar grant and a 500-million-Dollar concessional loan to Ethiopia, said Tesfaye Beljige, the government whip in parliament, Xinhua news agency reported.

He said the financial agreements aim to support Ethiopia's comprehensive reforms, the target of which is to stabilize the macroeconomic imbalances, with a particular focus on creating jobs, curbing inflation, addressing foreign exchange shortages, and facilitating structural adjustments.

The loan is interest-free with a six-year grace period and will be paid in 38 years. It conforms with the country's loan administration strategy, Beljige said.

The agreements on the grant and loan was signed Tuesday by Ethiopia and the World Bank.