Together We Stand

[ 153 ] 2015, the value of the fund’s total technical assistance grants amounted to about US$400 million. The fund has always welcomed cooperation with national, regional and international institutions and country donors in financing projects, especially large projects with a required capital investment beyond the capacity of one financier. Many projects supported by the fund fall into this category. About 55 per cent of fund-supported projects are co-financed in partnership with one or more of the development insti- tutions and country donors. Such co-financing, coordinated among co-financiers, helped recipient countries to mobilize the resources needed for implementing major projects and paved the way for their orderly and timely execution. Many developing countries have fallen under the pressure of heavy debt, especially the poor countries, whose development efforts were hampered by debt services beyond their capacity to pay. When the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund launched their initiative to provide debt relief to the heavily indebted poor countries in 1996, the Kuwait Fund supported the initiative, and it has been providing debt relief in accord- ance with the conditions of eligibility. About 28 countries have received debt relief to help them in economic recovery and the implementation of further development projects. The fund recognizes that the availability of resources is necessary for the implementation of projects, but this alone is not sufficient for ensuring their effectiveness. Other factors are significantly important, such as the advice provided to recipi- ents and the consultation with them on all matters pertaining to preparation, implementation and operation of projects. In this respect, the fund availed its developing country partners the advisory services of its professional staff, and shared with them its experience and lessons drawn from similar projects. The fund exerted concerted effort to address the complexity of development issues and the challenges facing its partners in the developing world. Over the last 15 years, the fund has been supporting countries in their efforts to achieve the internation- ally agreed Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), especially the overarching goal of eradicating poverty and hunger and other goals that contribute to improving livelihoods and quality of life. In the years ahead, the fund will continue its endeav- ours to help partner countries in implementing the post-2015 development agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), to be achieved by 2030. However, the fund does not only look at roads and power grids; it looks into easing human suffering in the face of disas- ter. In this regard, the fund reached out to other developing nations to assist them in overcoming crisis and disaster situa- tions, whether natural or man-made. In this respect, the fund has contributed to ameliorating the negative environmental impacts of human failures, such as the case of the Aral Sea desiccation and the Chernobyl nuclear reactor meltdown. The Aral Sea project is an example of an environmental disaster, where the whole Aral Sea almost diminished due to the diversion of supplying rivers for irrigation and other purposes. During the first decade of the new millennium Kazakhstan took action to restore the northern Aral Sea and to improve the livelihoods of the population in the region. To help in addressing these issues, the fund provided a loan of about US$14million to Kazakhstan in support of developmental efforts in the Aral Sea region. Another example of efforts exerted by the fund to combat environmen- tal disaster is the financing furnished by the fund to contain the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. In that regard, the fund has stood continuously with its bilateral and multilateral counterparts and has provided grants totalling about US$15 million between 1998 and the present, for the Chyrnobyl Shelter Fund administered by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Meanwhile, the fund spared no effort in supporting other nations to restore the livelihoods of those affected by natural Transport, energy, water and sanitation and social services are essential for improving the livelihoods and promoting overall growth and development The Kuwait Fund has provided advisory services from its professional staff to help in the preparation, implementation and operation of projects Image: Kuwait Fund for Development Image: Kuwait Fund for Development T ogether W e S tand