Ethiopia, World Bank agree $300 million grant for reconstruction

ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) -Ethiopia and the World Bank have signed a pact for a grant of $300 million to assist reconstruction and recovery in conflict-hit areas, the finance ministry said.

Fighting that erupted in the northern region of Tigray in November 2020, and spilled over into neighbouring Afar and Amhara last year, has eased since a unilateral ceasefire by the federal government in March.

“The resource will be used to finance the activities designed to support … basic services,” the ministry said in a statement late on Monday.

Services that stand to benefit are education, health, water supply and a special effort to support survivors of gender-based violence in conflict-hit areas, it said.

Areas in Amhara, Afar, Tigray and the regions of Oromia and Benishangul-Gumuz are targeted to receive the funds, it said, adding that the government would sign up with third-party organisations to execute the project in high-conflict areas.

The violence in Oromia and Benishangul-Gumuz, home to several ethnic groups, is separate from the war in Tigray.

(Reporting by Addis Ababa Newsroom; Additional reporting by George Obulutsa in Nairobi; Editing by Clarence Fernandez)