The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved three loans for Honduras for a total of $180 million to support reforms to the pension system and the financial sector, and to help the country deal with natural disasters.
A credit of $100 million will help to improve the natural disaster response capacity. These funds will be used by the government of Honduras for extraordinary expenses caused by hurricanes, earthquakes and flooding. Should the need arise, the funds would be allocated to cover expenses such as emergency sanitary elements, medications, facilities and equipment for temporary shelters, among others.
A second project for $40 million will help strengthen the country’s macroeconomic and fiscal stability through reforms that promote the long-term sustainability of social welfare institutions. Among other aspects, the project seeks to improve the financial viability of the Honduran Social Security Institute and to increase administrative and budgetary control of the central government’s human resources.
A third project for $40 million will support the strengthening of the financial safety net and improved access to credit targeting the lowest-income segment of the population as well as micro, small and medium-size businesses, as a mechanism that helps to reduce poverty.