STEPHEN NDEGWA Country Director Papua New Guinea and Pacific Islands 07-Feb-2024 _____________ Honorable Professor Biman Chand Prasad Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Finance, Strategic Planning, National Development and Statistics Ministry of Finance, Strategic Planning, National Development and Statistics Ro Lalabalavu House P O Box 2212 Suva REPUBLIC OF FIJI Re: IDA Credit 7106-FJ (Additional Financing for Fiji Social Protection COVID-19 Response and System Development Project) Additional Instructions: Disbursement and Financial Information Letter (1st Amendment) Excellency: I refer to the Financing Agreement between Republic of Fiji (“Recipient”) and the International Development Association (“Association”) for the above-referenced Project. The General Conditions, as defined in the Financing Agreement, provide that the Recipient may from time to time request withdrawals of IDA Credit No. 7106-FJ (“Financing”) from the Financing Account in accordance with the Disbursement and Financial Information Letter (“DFIL”), and such additional instructions as the Association may specify from time to time by notice to the Recipient. The General Conditions also provide that the Disbursement and Financial Information Letter may set out Project specific financial reporting requirements. This letter constitutes such Disbursement and Financial Information Letter and may be revised from time to time, and replaces the DFIL dated May 24, 2022 in its entirety. I. Disbursement Arrangements, Withdrawal of Financing Funds, and Reporting of Uses of Financing Funds The Disbursement Guidelines for Investment Project Financing, dated February 2017 (“Disbursement Guidelines”), are available on the Association’s public website at https://www.worldbank.org and its secure website “Client Connection” at https://clientconnection.worldbank.org. The Disbursement Guidelines are an integral part of the DFIL, and the manner in which the provisions in the Disbursement Guidelines apply to the Financing is specified below. (i) Disbursement Arrangements  General Provisions (Schedule 1). The table in Schedule 1 sets out the disbursement methods which may be used by the Recipient, and conditions, information on registration of authorized signatories, processing of Withdrawal Applications (including the minimum value of applications and processing of advances), instructions on supporting documentation, and frequency of reporting on the Designated Account.  Special Provision. Projects in situations of urgent need of assistance or capacity constraints: Disbursements under contracts for goods, works, non-consulting services, and consulting services procured or selected through international open or limited competition or Direct Selection, as set out in the procurement plan for the project, must be made only through Direct Payment and/or Special Commitment disbursement methods. (ii) Withdrawal Applications (Electronic Delivery) 1 The Recipient shall deliver Withdrawal Applications (with supporting documents, “Applications”) electronically through the Association’s web-based portal “Client Connection” at https://clientconnection.worldbank.org. This option will be effective after the officials designated in writing by the Recipient, who are authorized to sign and deliver Applications, have registered as users of “Client Connection.” The designated officials shall deliver Applications electronically by completing Form 2380, which is accessible through “Client Connection.” By signing the Authorized Signatory Letter, which can be delivered manually or electronically, the Recipient confirms that it is authorizing such persons to accept Secure Identification Credentials (SIDC) and to deliver the Applications and supporting documents to the Association by these means. The Recipient may exercise the option of preparing and delivering Applications in paper form on exceptional cases (including those where the Recipient encounters legal limitations) and which were previously agreed with the Association. By designating officials to use SIDC and deliver the Applications electronically, the Recipient confirms through the Authorized Signatory Letter its agreement to (a) abide by the Terms and Conditions of Use of Secure Identification Credentials in connection with the Use of Electronic Means to Process Applications and Supporting Documentation, available in the Association's public website at https://www.worldbank.org and “Client Connection” at https://clientconnection.worldbank.org; and (b) to cause such officials to abide by those terms and conditions. II. Financial Reports and Audits 2 (i) Financial Reports The Recipient shall prepare and furnish to the Association not later than forty-five (45) days after the end of each calendar semester interim unaudited financial reports (“IFRs”) for the Project covering the semester. 1. Audits Each audit of the Financial Statements shall cover the period of one (1) fiscal year of the Recipient, commencing with the fiscal year in which the first withdrawal was made. The audited Financial Statements for each such period shall be furnished to the Association by the Recipient not later than nine (9) months after the end of such period. As an additional requirement, the audit report will contain a separate opinion on compliance of “Unemployment Assistance Cash Transfers” and ‘Labor Costs’ for Job for Nature 2.0 with the Financing Agreement. III. Other Important Information For additional information on disbursement arrangements, please refer to the Loan Handbook available on the Association’s public website at https://www.worldbank.org and “Client Connection” at https://clientconnection.worldbank.org, the Bank recommends that you register as a user of “Client Connection.” From this website, you will be able to prepare and deliver Authorized Signatory Letters and Withdrawal Applications, monitor the near real-time status of the financing and retrieve related policy, 1 Section 10.01 (c) of the General Conditions 2 Section 5.09 of the General Conditions financial, and procurement information. For more information about the website and registration arrangements, or if you have any queries in relation to the above, please contact the Association by email at askloans@worldbank.org using the above reference. Yours sincerely, ______________________________ Stephen N. Ndegwa Country Director Papua New Guinea and the Pacific Islands East Asia and Pacific Region Attachments 1. Form of Authorized Signatory Letter 2. Statement of Expenditure (SOE) With copies: Mr. Shiri Gounder, Ministry of Finance 370 Victoria Parade Suva, Fiji shiri.gounder@finance.gov.fj Ms. Sisilia Nailade, Ministry of Finance 370 Victoria Parade Suva, Fiji sisilia.nailade@finance.gov.fj Schedule 1: Disbursement Provisions Basic Information Country Republic of Fiji Recipient Republic of Fiji (with Ministry of Section III.B.2 of Schedule 2 to the Closing Date Economy as recipient of IDA credit Loan Agreement. IDA 7106-FJ funds Credit No. Fiji Social Protection COVID-19 Disbursement Four (4) months after the closing Name of the Project Response and System Development Deadline Date date Project Disbursement Methods and Supporting Documentation Disbursement Methods Methods Supporting Documentation Direct Payment Yes Copy of records (e.g., invoices and receipts) Reimbursement Yes Statement of Expenditure (SOE) in the format provided in Attachment 2 of the DFIL Advance (into a Designated Yes Statement of Expenditure (SOE) in the format provided in Attachment 2 of the DFIL Account) Special Commitments Yes Copy of Letter of Credit (including pro forma invoice(s), if cited in the Letter of Credit) Designated Account Pooled; one (1) pooled designated account for receipts of funds Fixed Type from IDA Credit No. 6828-FJ under the Original Financing and Ceiling IDA Credit No. 7106-FJ under the Additional Financing only. Financial Institution - HFC Bank Currency Fiji Dollars (FJD) Name FJD 2,000,000 for IDA Credit No. 6828- Frequency of Reporting Quarterly or more if needed Amount FJ and IDA Credit No. 7106-FJ combined Minimum Value of Applications (subsection 3.5) The minimum value of applications for Reimbursement, Direct Payment and Special Commitment is FJD 80,000 equivalent. Authorized Signatures Withdrawal and Documentation Applications The form for Authorized Signatories Letter is provided in Attachment 1 of this letter The form for Authorized Signatory Letter is provided in Attachment 1 of this letter. The ASL and all Withdrawal Applications with their supporting documentation will be submitted electronically via the Association’s “Client Connection” system. If the ASL and all Withdrawal Applications with their supporting documentation will be submitted manually to the following address The World Bank Level 19, 14 Martin Place CML Building Sydney NSW 2000, Australia Attention: Country Director If Withdrawal Applications with their supporting documentation will be submitted manually, please submit to the following address: The World Bank 26th Floor, One Global Place 5th Avenue cor 25th Street, Bonifacio Global City Taguig City, Philippines 1634 Attention: Loan Department Additional Information 1. The designated account already opened under the Original Financing of the Project will also be used for receipts of funds from IDA Credit No. 6828-FJ under the Additional Financing Separate records should be kept to clearly account for funds from IDA Credit No. 6828-FJ and IDA Credit No. 7106-FJ. 2. To the extent practical, funds from the Original Financing (IDA Credit No. 6828-FI) may be exhausted before funds from the Additional Financing (IDA Credit No. 7106-FJ) are accessed. [Attachment 1 – Form of Authorized Signatory Letter] [Letterhead] Ministry of Finance [Street address] [City] [Country] [DATE] International Development Association 1818 H Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20433 United States of America Attention: [Country Director] 3 Dear [Country Director]: Re: IDA [Credit] [Grant]4 No. _______-___ (name of Project) I refer to the [Credit] [Grant] Agreement (“Agreement”) between the International Development Association (“Association”)[, acting as implementing of the ] 5 and [name of recipient] (“Recipient”), providing the above [Credit] [Grant]. For the purposes of Section 2.03 of the General Conditions as defined in the Agreement, any 6[one] of the persons whose authenticated specimen signatures appear below is authorized on behalf of the Recipient to sign Withdrawal Applications (“Application”) [and applications for a special commitment] under this [Credit] [Grant]. For the purpose of delivering Applications to the Association, including by electronic means, 7 [each] of the persons whose authenticated specimen signatures appears below is authorized on behalf of the Recipient, acting 8[individually] 9[jointly], to deliver Applications and evidence in support thereof on the terms and conditions specified by the Association. 3 Instruction to Association staff: please forward this letter to the Country Lawyer for further processing (Recipient: please do not delete this note). 4 Instruction to the Recipient: use “Credit” or “Grant” as applicable. Please delete this footnote in the final letter that is sent to the Association. 5 Instruction to the Recipient: add text in line with the Grant Agreement if applicable, if not applicable delete it. Please delete this footnote in the final letter that is sent to the Associations 6 Instruction to the Recipient: stipulate if more than one person needs to sign Applications, and how many or which positions, and if any thresholds apply. Please delete this footnote in the final letter that is sent to the Association. 7 Instruction to the Recipient: stipulate if more than one person needs to jointly sign Applications, if so, please indicate the actual number. Please delete this footnote in the final letter that is sent to the Association. 8 Instruction to the Recipient: use this bracket if any one of the authorized persons may sign; if this is not applicable, please delete it. Please delete this footnote in the final letter that is sent to the Association. 9 Instruction to the Recipient: use this bracket only if several individuals must jointly sign each Application; if this is not applicable, please delete it. Please delete this footnote in the final letter that is sent to the Association. This confirms that the Recipient is authorizing such persons to accept Secure Identification Credentials (SIDC) and to deliver the Applications and supporting documents to the Association by electronic means. In full recognition that the Association shall rely upon such representations and warranties, including without limitation, the representations and warranties contained in the Terms and Conditions of Use of Secure Identification Credentials in connection with Use of Electronic Means to Process Applications and Supporting Documentation (“Terms and Conditions of Use of SIDC”), the Recipient represents and warrants to the Association that it will cause such persons to abide by those terms and conditions. This Authorization replaces and supersedes any Authorization currently in the Association records with respect to this Agreement. [Name], [position] Specimen Signature: ____________________ [Name], [position] Specimen Signature: ____________________ [Name], [position] Specimen Signature: ____________________ Yours truly, / signed / ______________ [Position]10 10 Instruction to Association staff: please forward this letter to the Country Lawyer for further processing (Borrower: please do not delete this note). Attachment 2 – Statement of Expenditures FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY Prepared by: M. Mascardo, Finance Officer, WFACS Cleared with and cc: [Country Lawyer, Unit] [Task Team Leader, Unit] Cc: [FMS, Unit]