World Bank releases more aid

The World Bank will this month release a further US $30 million to Malawi for balance of payments support, media reports said. The Bank last month released another US $30 million to Malawi, raising the country’s indebtedness to the Bank to about US $1.6 billion. The Bank’s Washington-based country director for Malawi, Barbara Kafka, who was in the country for a six-day visit that ended on Sunday, said Malawi’s GDP of 3 percent last year was “not good enough to reduce poverty levels”, which is estimated by UNDP to affect 60 percent of the country’s 11 million people. Kafka added that the country’s economy, which has averaged 2 percent growth over the last 10 years, needs to grow by at least six percent annually to create jobs and attract investment.