On Sunday 9 October, the European Investment Bank (EIB) announced in Washington that it has signed a partnership deal with the World Bank (WB) on a joint initiative to back new businesses in the Middle East/North African region (MENA) to help young people and women in the region in particular.
The agreement confirms the long-term partnership in the Mediterranean region between the EIB and the WB, explains the EIB in a press release. This pooling of resources and experience will produce greater impact on the ground, said EIB vice-president Roman Escolano, one of the agreement’s co-signatories.
The World Bank focuses on developing a dynamic private sector, which it says will be crucial for growth, but creating an environment favourable to development of the private sector is still needed. In July 2016, the EIB, WB and European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) announced a joint report on the conditions for improving this environment. (Original version in French by Fathi B'Chir )