Azerbaijan, Baku, April 2 /Trend, I. Khalilova /
A WB mission, led by education project manager Meskerem Mulatu is in Azerbaijan to discuss reforming the educational system, the WB Baku office told Trend today.
"The mission of the bank will be to hold a general dialogue on a wide range of issues on cooperation in the field of education," the office said.
The visit will last until April 6. The education project implemented by the WB in the country will be reviewed.
Today, the World Bank financed three projects in Azerbaijan in the field of education. The first loan of $5 million was allocated by the bank in 1999. The second project of the World Bank in Azerbaijan in the sphere of education, which was aimed at sectoral reform based on a program of reforms in education, coming into force since 1999. The purpose of the program is to improve the quality of education and transformation of the sector as a whole. The total project cost amounted to $20.99 million, $18 million of which accounted for WB loan. It was approved by the Board of Directors on May 27, 2003.
The cost of the third project, a credit agreement on which was signed in September 2008, is $45.4 million, $25 million of which is the share of WB loan.
All these projects are financed by the bank on favorable terms, through the International Development Association (IDA). Further funding for education will be implemented through the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD), because Azerbaijan did not have access to the means of IDA.
The strategy of reforming the education system of Azerbaijan is estimated at $250 million.
The WB also discusses the issues of reforming and improving the higher education system in the country.
"There is no project for the higher education development yet, but we are discussing the issues of reforming the system."
Earlier, it was reported that the World Bank plans to allocate about $30-40 million to this project, in accordance with the practice of the World Bank to finance such projects.
However, the bank postponed the new project implementation until a national education development strategy is prepared in Azerbaijan.
Azerbaijan joined the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development in 1992 and the International Development Association in 1995.
The World Bank has invested $3.122 billion in 56 projects during this period. As of January 1, 2013, WB loans worth $1.714.1 billion or 54.5 percent of the total amount of borrowed loans were used.