Deputies approve the credit of $us 500 million with the IDB after three months

After three months of receiving the respective bill, the Chamber of Deputies approved in its station in large and in detail the loan contract of 500 million dollars signed with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) for the attention of vulnerable populations by Covid-19.

PL 267/2022-2023 was sent by the Executive Branch on February 10 and was received by the presidency of the Chamber of Deputies on February 13 of this year for treatment. The credit agreement was signed on January 24 by the Plurinational State of Bolivia and the IDB. The international organization had approved this financing on October 21, 2021. Now the project passes for approval in the Senate.

The Minister of Development Planning, Sergio Cusicanqui, indicated that these resources will make it possible to replenish those disbursed by the State for the Bonus against Hunger and meet health needs and equipment of third-level hospitals.

“Having approved the bill 267/2022-2023 in its two stages in large and in detail and being the chamber of origin, it is referred to the Chamber of Senators for constitutional review purposes,” reported the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Jerges Suarez Market.

The document was supported by 61 votes in favor, while 47 legislators rejected it. There were two blank votes and one null.

The $500 million loan has a two-year disbursement period, a ten-year grace period, and an interest rate based on LIBOR, as reported by the IDB in 2021.

The bill sent to the Legislative Assembly established an interest rate of 2.32% and the payment term is 23 years, which includes a 10-year grace period.

50% of the IDB credit is committed to finance the Bond against Hunger, that is, 250 million dollars (component I). 48.7%, another 243.7 million dollars, will be directed to the reduction of morbidity and mortality caused by Covid-19 and mitigation of the indirect effects of the pandemic on health (component 2), specific to the project of Law. The balance of 12.6 million dollars (component 3) will be allocated to management, monitoring and evaluation, the Ministry of Economy and the Ministry of Health.