2024-09-26 22:54:28
The Minister of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia, Ricardo Bonilla González, confirmed that the country will seek to access new resources from international banks to meet the payment of its debt with different national and foreign organizations.
The announcement came after a meeting in New York with representatives of the International Monetary Fund (IMF).in which alternatives to alleviate the burden of financial obligations were discussed.
Minister Bonilla pointed out that, with the support of the IMF, it is expected to obtain “fresh resources” that will allow adjustments to be made in the payment of the debt, thus achieving a reduction in interest rates.. “There was talk about how we found, with the support of the IMF, fresh resources to have adjustments in the payment of the entire debt process that remained in Colombia, with different national and international organizations, with lower interest rates,” said the official. .
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Relieve the burden of debt to free up space for investment
The minister stressed the importance of this strategy to free up resources that are currently committed to debt service, which limits the government’s ability to invest in key areas for the country’s economic and social development. “It is a process that we need to alleviate the weight that we have today, which limits our investment space,” he stated.
Another point highlighted by Bonilla was the discussion on the IMF’s special drawing rights (SDR). According to the minister, progress was made in the possibility of these resources being used to promote a climate agenda both in Colombia and Latin America, with the support of the United Nations. “These resources are committed to developing a climate agenda in Colombia and Latin America that is not at the cost of Latin America, but rather is an international process to effectively help the decarbonization of the economy,” Bonilla explained.
Commitment to paying the pandemic debt
During the meeting with the president of the IMF, Kristalina Georgieva, Minister Bonilla reaffirmed Colombia’s commitment to continue paying the obligations acquired during the pandemic. In this context, Colombia continues to honor a loan of 5.6 billion dollars that was granted by the IMF to the previous administration to face the Covid-19 crisis.
“We have paid three out of eight installments, we have judiciously fulfilled the commitment, it will continue to be fulfilled,” said the minister, adding that the country will complete the full payment of this debt in 2025.
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