ADB may disburse $1.2b this year

ADB may disburse $1.2b this year

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) is mulling over disbursing
this year between US$1.15 billion to $1.2 billion in loans that
were put on hold last year when terms and conditions set on them
had not been meet, an ADB executive said on Monday.

Visiting ADB vice president John Lintjer said the disbursement
of the loans would be used to finance development projects here.

"We are hoping this year to be able to disburse our
commitments from last year to the government of Indonesia. This
isn't a new commitment, but it will be for 2002," Lintjer was
quoted as saying by detik.com after meeting Vice President Hamzah
Haz at the palace.

Parts of the ADB's loans are attached to reform targets, the
government must first meet before the bank disburses its loans.

Last year the ADB withheld a significant portion of its loans
which would have finance, among other things, power projects, as
the government was unable to get a new electricity law in place.

Getting these loan programs to work now would help the cash
strapped government finance some of its development needs.

Lintjer said in his meeting with Hamzah, he had asked him how
Indonesia had been using the ADB's loans, and whether they had
been used right on target.

Indonesia's pervasive corruption remains a major concern to
international lenders wanting to ensure their loans were used
effectively.

ADB vice president for Indonesia, David Green said that most
of the loans the ADB planned to disburse this year would finance
infrastructure project and poverty reduction programs.

Under a deal last year with the government, the ADB has
committed loans of between $600 million and $1.2 billion annually
until the year 2004. The high range of the lending depends on the
government's success in meeting various reform targets.