World Bank Group President visits Ghana today

The World Bank Group President, Dr. Jim Yong Kim, arrives in Ghana today for meetings with the Vice President, Mr. Kwesi Amissah-Arthur, and other government officials.

Dr. Kim will also meet officials of the UN Mission for Ebola Emergency Response (UNMEER)  to discuss the Ebola epidemic and its debilitating impact on the three heavily affected countries, Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone   in particular and on the West African sub-region as a whole.

A statement from the World Bank said Dr. Kim would reaffirm the World Bank Group’s commitment to fighting the Ebola epidemic and would share the latest news on how the World Bank Group will continue to work closely with partners to assist the affected countries.

According to a recent World Bank Group report, if the virus continued to surge in the three worst-affected countries and spread to neighbouring countries, the two-year regional financial impact could reach $32.6 billion by the end of 2015.

The World Bank Group has mobilised a $400 million financing package to help the three countries hardest hit by the epidemic contain the spread of infections, help communities cope with the economic impact of the crisis, and to improve public health systems.