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Seminar in Barcelona, Spain

At the request of the Barcelona Chamber of Commerce, Partnerships for Finance and Development coordinated a seminar on How to win contracts funded by the World Bank (WB) and the Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). About 20 Spanish companies and one Bank participated. The Seminar was conducted over one and one half days. The Seminar was very practical and down to earth on the “Dos and Do not’s” and on what a company needs to do to win contracts funded by the WB and MCC.

Mr. Spiros Voyadzis, CEO of Partnerships for Finance and Development gave a detailed presentation on how to compete in tenders for technical assistance projects financed by the World Bank the Millennium Challenge Corporation. Among the key issues addressed were the following: When to intervene during the project cycle for both the World Bank and the Millennium Challenge Corporation? How to get the max accurate and useful information? How to write a winning expression of interest? How to write a winning tender? Need to form consortia with local partners? Can a small company enter this market? Are references important? Need to focus both on business and geographic areas? What are the points of intervention and decision making?

Voyadzis said that the World Bank is a vital source of financial and technical assistance to developing countries around the world.

During the Seminar, Mr. Voyadzis gave a presentation of contracts won by Spanish firms and an overview of the regions and sectors that benefit most from the World Bank lending. From FY03 through FY07, the number of contracts for international technical assistance won by Spanish companies and funded by the World Bank reached some US$378 million in all regions.

In 2007, lending by the World Bank Group was a total of $24.7 Million for six regions: Africa (24%), South Asia (23%), Latin America and the Caribbean (18%), East Asia and pacific (16%), Europe and Central Asia (15%) and Middle East and North Africa (4%).

The second organization highlighted during the seminar was the Millennium Challenge Corporation, a relatively new and independent US funded corporation managed by a CEO and overseen by a Board. The mission of the Millennium Challenge Corporation is: Poverty Reduction through Economic Growth.

Today, 25 countries worldwide are eligible to receive grants from the Millennium Challenge Corporation: Twelve countries in Africa, four in Latin America, and nine in Eurasia. Congress has appropriated a total of $5.99 billion for FY04 through FY07. MCC procurement is under ICB and parallels procurement under the WB. About half of commitments are for infrastructure and the remaining half for agriculture, rural development, environment and health.