Off the wire
• Feature: Coping with Taiwan's dengue epidemic  • Interview: Confucius Institutes vital for China-U.S. relations  • Criminal probe nearing end into deadly Christchurch quake building  • UNICEF works with South Asian nations to reduce children casualties in disasters  • S. Korea, U.S. to hold high-level defense talks next week: Seoul  • S. Korea to launch seminar, development forum in Myanmar  • Qualcomm, Chinese partners to invest in chip program  • 2nd LD-Writethru: Updated China ODI data shows more impressive growth  • Leaders of Nepal hail new constitution as victory  • New Zealand government invests in Christchurch-Guangzhou air service  
You are here: 　 Home

Myanmar to receive financial support from World Bank for power plan

Xinhua, September 17, 2015 Adjust font size:

Myanmar will receive 400 million U. S. dollars from World Bank Group to provide financing and technical assistance for Myanmar's National Electrification Plan ( NEP), according to a press release of the World Bank Group issued here on Thursday.

In Myanmar, where over 70 percent of the people have no access to electricity, bringing light to towns and villages is an urgent priority in helping people out of poverty and in powering a rapidly growing economy, the release said.

The six-year project is expected to benefit over 6.2 million people by bringing electricity to more than 1.2 million households in Myanmar through 2021.

"This 400 million U.S. dollars project will help connect towns to the grid and turn on lights in schools, clinics and remote villages. We welcome and support Myanmar's goal to achieve universal access to electricity by 2030," said World Bank Southeast Asia Country Director Ulrich Zachau.

"The National Electrification Plan will transform Myanmar by giving the people of our towns and villages access to more job opportunities, better health care and lighting for classrooms," said U Aung Than Oo, Deputy Minister of Ministry of Electric Power of Government of Myanmar.

Over the course of the six-year project, the World Bank financing will also provide grid connections for 23,000 schools, clinics and community centers, and 132,000 street lights will be turned on, opening village markets after dark and improving safety. Endi