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European Bank signs Russian privatisation loan - first technical cooperation loan
Jacques Attali, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and Anatoly Chubais, Chairman of the Russian Privatisation Ministry - the State Committee for the Management of State Property ("GKI") - signed a technical cooperation loan agreement yesterday for US$ 43.8 million (ECU 36.8 million equivalent) of funding to be made available for the Russian Privatisation Programme. It is the first technical cooperation loan made by the Bank.
Jacques Attali, speaking at the signing ceremony, said "This loan indicates the high priority the Bank is giving to the privatisation process and to economic reform generally in Russia. Even with the current difficult political conditions the need to push the privatisation process forward remains paramount. The loan will provide major support over the next three years to give the regions the necessary momentum."
The objective of the loan is to help broaden and strengthen the implementation of the Mass Privatisation Programme, which is starting to gather real speed. To date, 400 enterprises have been sold via the voucher auction process; another 250 are planned for April. By the end of 1993, the GKI aims to have privatised 70-80 per cent of all small businesses and approximately 10-15,000 medium to large sized enterprises.
In order to achieve such objectives the GKI has to ensure that the Programme is carried out consistently throughout the country and in a transparent, fair and professionally organised manner. The Privatisation Manual, launched last week by GKI and the European Bank, will be a major step towards achieving this goal and the loan will help finance the training of officials employed to carry out such operations. The main beneficiaries of the loan will be the government bodies involved in the Programme and the enterprises that receive advisory support throughout the country.
The loan is part of a total co-financing package of ECU 134.3 million with contributions from the Russian Federation and the World Bank. A new organisation, the Privatisation Centre set up with funds from the European Bank and the World Bank, will be established in Moscow to implement the loan.
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