Manila, June 15, 2006 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Asian Development Bank (ASX: ATB) is prepared to provide US$800 million to US$900 million in new loans to Indonesia in 2006, and US$1 billion to US$1.1 billion in 2007, said Edgar Cua, ADB's Country Director in Indonesia, today before meeting of the Consultative Group on Indonesia scheduled for 14 June.
The funds will be sourced from ADB's ordinary capital resources and its concessional funding window.
"This proposed scale of assistance is a vote of confidence in Indonesia's macroeconomic performance and the Government's commitment to policy reforms. Our support will focus on infrastructure and social sectors, with the aim of increasing public and private investment in development," said Mr. Cua.
The Consultative Group on Indonesia, including ADB and other development partners, met today to assess the country's needs and formulate the best forms of financial assistance. Indonesia came to the meeting in a relatively stronger position than in years past. "The Government's macroeconomic management has helped bring the country's economic indicators back to favorable pre-1997 Asian financial crisis levels," said Mr. Cua.
ADB is also assisting with the country's reconstruction needs after the 27 May earthquake with an initial offer of US$10 million in immediate grant assistance and $50 million reprogramming of ongoing soft loans, for a total of $60 million.
ADB has worked closely with the Government of Indonesia and development partners to assess the damage caused by the earthquake, and coordinates with other donors and organizations to provide the most effective assistance.
Indonesia is a founding member of ADB and its sixth largest shareholder. By the end of 2005, it had received 272 public sector loans amounting to US$20.7 billion, along with 480 technical assistance (TA) projects amounting to US$240.449 million. Measured by public sector loan approvals, Indonesia is ADB's largest client, and its second largest recipient of TA support.
Contact
Ayun Sundari
Email: asundari@adb.org
Tel:+ 62 21 251 2721
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