News: LIBREVILLE (Reuters) – The World Bank has suspended its disbursements to Gabon due to debt arrears of 17 billion CFA francs ($27 million), the central African country’s public accounts ministry said. The ministry cited several factors for the suspension, including insufficient mobilization of resources on the international market1.
“All the necessary steps are being taken to clear these arrears as quickly as possible,” the ministry said in a statement dated January 13. As of last October, the World Bank had three active projects in Gabon worth a total of $214.5 million, according to the bank’s website1. In July, the World Bank suspended Gabon’s right to make loan and grant withdrawals as overdue payments reached around $17 million, a letter seen by Reuters showed at the time.
The ministry also said in the statement it had made debt payments of 1,210 billion CFA francs ($1.9 billion) at the end of November 2024.