The World Bank said it had committed 696.92 billion naira (US$4.5 billion) in loans and grants for various developmental projects across Nigeria, according to the Country Director of the bank, Ms. Marie Francoise Marie-Nelly.
According to the private Punch newspaper Tuesday, Ms. Marie-Nelly gave the figure at the inauguration of the Polychlorinated Biphenyl Management (PCB) Project in the Nigerian capital city of Abuja.
“The bank has a diverse portfolio in Nigeria of over US$4.5billion in loans and grants, including long-standing and broad involvement in the power sector that will allow for synergies to be developed,” she said
”The ongoing US$300m Nigeria Energy and Gas Improvement project will benefit from the design of the PCB project to help properly manage transformers and capacitors, particularly in the decommissioning and replacement of PCB-contaminated equipment and the disposal of PCB waste,” she added.
The PCB project is to be implemented over a four-year period to December 2015.
While the Global Environment Fund (GEF) has provided US$6.3 million, the Federal Government will provide an additional US$12.2 million to eliminate environmental and health risks posed by PCBs.
The World Bank country director said the PCB project draws on the bank’s world-wide experience in projects conducted across different sectors in which environmental health concerns have been steadily mainstreamed.
These include mining, industry, energy, solid waste management, agriculture, health care and transport.
