The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved eight financial operations for Argentina, Brazil, Ecuador, Haiti, Honduras, and Uruguay for a value of US $ 1.65 billion.
The operations they will be destined for aim to strengthen public finances, reactivate the economy, and improve health services, water and sanitation, and transportation.
These funds are also expected to contribute to improving resilience to natural disasters, food security, the business climate, and connectivity in rural areas, among other areas, the IDB reported in a statement.
Within this aid package, there are two loans for Argentina for 500 million. The first seeks to finance access to public health services for the Province of Buenos Aires population, and the second is to improve the safety of road networks in the same area.
For Brazil, a loan for US $ 80 million was approved to improve the coverage of drinking water and sanitation in Manaus and for urbanization projects, digital transformation, and inclusion of gender and diversity.
The loan for Ecuador amounts to 400 million. It will finance a program to strengthen the institutional and regulatory framework to improve the business climate, promote international trade and enhance financial stability and access to financing.
For Haiti, the IDB has planned non-reimbursable financing for US $ 60 million to improve the food security of rural households, including the country’s farmers, fishermen, seafood traders, and rural workers, by promoting rural productivity and connectivity markets.
This project will be co-financed with 18.3 million from the Global Agriculture and Food Security Program.
In the case of Honduras, the 400 million loans will help to face natural and public health disasters. They will cushion the impact of a natural disaster or a severe or catastrophic health event on public finances.
Finally, the IDB approved two loans for Uruguay for 210 million. The first, of 145 million to promote the post-pandemic economic and fiscal recovery, with measures to protect the income of vulnerable households and increase the liquidity of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.
The second loan for Uruguay, of 65 million, will be used to rehabilitate different road sections.