World Bank, A.D.B. Give Lesotho the Nod |
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A joint World Bank and African Development Bank mission has approved the good progress made in the country's Utilities Sector Reform Project, including efforts towards the privatisation of the Lesotho Electricity Corporation (LEC). It found that over 13 000 electricity connections have been made since the new management took over in February 2001, according to a statement from the Privatisation Unit. The mission, which visited the country at the end of November, met with government officials including those from the ministries of Finance and Development Planning, Natural Resources, Department of Energy, the Privatisation Unit, the Central bank of Lesotho, the LEC and the Lesotho Telecommunications Authority. According to the Privatisation Unit, the visit was intended to review progress made in the implementation of the Reform Project, which aims at restructuring key public utilities, including electricity and telecommunications, in order to ensure wider access to basic utilities, improve efficiency as well as ensure their sustainability. The review, mandatory under
the terms of both the IDA development credit and the African Development
Bank loan agreements, evaluated the fundamentals and assessed the project's
progress, including achievements to date and actions that need to be
undertaken during the remainder of the Project period, the Privatisation
Unit said. |
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