Azerbaijan, Baku, May 21 / Trend A. Akhundov /
World Bank (WB) and the Azerbaijani government agreed the cost of the "Azerbaijan Rural Investment" (AzRIP) during the official talks within the second project "Azerbaijan Rural Investment", WB's Baku office told Trend on Monday.
The negotiations began on May 16. The WB mission, headed by project manager Daniel Owen arrived in Baku.
The bank's office said that the cost of the project is $53.6 million, of which 30 million will be allocated through the International Reconstruction and Development Bank (IBRD, is part of the WB), $23.6 million - at the expense of the Azerbaijani government's share in the project.
"During the week a protocol will be signed after the talks," the bank said. "This confirms that the project was approved at the level of delegations. This is the basis for submitting the project to the Board of Directors for consideration."
The bank said that the project will be considered at the Board of WB Directors on July 5.
The new project is a continuation of the first one. As opposed to it, it covers the whole territory. The implementation of the first project will be completed in 2012. The second project is designed for 2012-2017. Moreover, while it presently covers only 45 regions, the second one aims to cover 56.
The loan agreement for the AzRIP first project was signed on September 23, 2004 and came into force on December 29, 2004. The total cost is $21.1 million, $15 million of which accounts for International Development Association credit, $3.3 million in a grant from the Japanese government and the remainder is paid by the government and beneficiaries (communities) all sharing $1.25 million in the project.