COTONOU, Dec. 18 (Xinhua) -- The World Bank has decided to grant financing of 100 million U.S. dollars to help the Beninese government

strengthen public finance and debt management, improve the financial sustainability of the energy sector and foster the development of the digital economy, the World Bank said in a statement received by Xinhua in Cotonou on Friday.

This new financing is the second operation to support development policies intended to support the efforts undertaken by public authorities to promote faster and more sustainable growth, weighed down in recent months by the coronavirus pandemic, explained the World Bank in the communicated.

"The program will support reforms relating to the mobilization and administration of tax revenue and debt management. The reforms will help increase the financial viability and competitiveness of the Beninese Electric Power Company (SBEE), develop renewable energy technologies and promote a competitive, safe and accessible digital sector,” the same source said.

The World Bank has estimated that Benin "can achieve an economy that is more resilient to shocks and conducive to the creation of more productive jobs and SME innovation".

"This funding contributes to this by ensuring the viability of the electricity sector and by strengthening competition in the provision of Internet services to improve the quality of service to citizens and at more affordable costs",