Ivory Coast

Ivory Coast's economy is expected to grow by 4.4 percent in 2009, up from an estimated 2.9 percent growth in 2008, the World Bank's country manager, Madani Tall, told a news conference Dec. 15. He said this GDP growth can only be achieved if natural resources are managed rigorously, corruption curbed and government contracts tendered instead of negotiated behind closed doors. Good governance is also the key condition for the IMF to approve a reduction in Ivory Coast's USD 14 billion in foreign debt, with the approval expected in February 2009. Debt reduction means that the economy will get an important financial injection as funds paid to service the debt can be used for local investment. (Dow Jones)