ABOUT US$46 billion (S$67 billion) in loans will be given out to countries by the World Bank this year, a massive jump from US$24 billion a year earlier.

The money was needed to support countries coping with the 'economic earthquake', said Mr James Adams, World Bank Regional Vice President for East Asia and the Pacific.

Speaking at the Singapore International Water Week conference on Tuesday, he said that countries should spend the money on infrastructure, which would not only create jobs, but lead the way towards sustained growth.

'We are meeting in the middle of what is perhaps the most severe economic crisis this generation has ever known,' he told a 300-strong (amresh is confirming figure) audience that included senior government officials, industry experts and policy makers.

The global financial crisis is expected to severely impact infrastructure investments in developing countries, as governments face shrinking resources and declining contributions from the private sector.

Developing countries are spending almost two-thirds (64 per cent) of stimulus packages on infrastructure to build transportation networks and electricity grids, for example.

Many countries are also beginning to invest in 'green opportunities' such as new renewable energy projects in wind, solar and hydropower to enhance sustainability, he said.

Countries in East Asia, which borrowed $8 billion from the World Bank kitty, were taking up the funding to build water reservoirs to expand their water sources and control the threat from flooding, for instance.

In earth-quake prone Phillipines, funding is used to build several new disaster-resistant school buildings in safer locations. The challenge is to get the 'biggest bang for the stimulus buck', said Mr Adams.

Meanwhile, the United Nations is adopting innovative approaches to financing water and sanitation infrastructure, operation and maintenance, said Holland's crown prince Willem-Alexander.

Read the full report in Wednesday's edition of The Straits Times.