The working group on debt reduction of the Board of Governors of the Inter-American Development Bank held its first meeting today, with participation of representatives of subregional banks, to explore debt reduction for Bolivia, Honduras, Nicaragua and Guyana.
The total cost of debt reduction for these four countries is expected to be $1.2 billion for the IDB and $540 million for subregional institutions. The cost to the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (BCIE) alone is estimated at $420 million.
The talks advanced satisfactorily and reflected the will of all the participating countries to find a solution that will be shared in an equitable way. Several concrete formulas were considered, and these will be examined in another meeting of the working group on May 23.
The United States chaired the working group in its capacity as chair of the Board of Governors of the IDB, a position to which it was elected during the March Annual Meeting of the IDB governors in New Orleans.
Among those attending today’s meeting, in addition to IDB governors, were representatives of the BCIE, the Andean Development Corporation, the Caribbean Development Bank, and the Cuenca del Plata Development Fund (Fonplata).