BID Calls for Writing Off Latin America Poor Countries Debts

The Inter American Development Bank, IDB, should write off Latin America poor countries debt because this will contribute to regional development and help reduce illegal migration to United States argued US Hispanic members of Congress.

Fifteen Hispanic Democrats from Congress addressed a letter to US Secretary of the Treasury John Snow requesting he intercedes in favor of the highly indebted countries during the current IDB annual general assembly taking place in Belo Horizonte, Brazil.

In the letter Congressmen specifically mention Bolivia, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras and Nicaragua. They further argue that the IDB must condone debts without imposing “economic conditions” and urgently, since “delays means lost lives”.

The Congressmen underlined that poverty, lack of opportunities is one of the main factors behind illegal immigration to United States, and therefore debt relief in the region will benefit not only poor countries but the U.S. also.

However no mention was made to the Development banks debts such as the IDB in the Americas. Nicaragua, Haiti, Bolivia, Honduras and Guyana have debts of almost 3.5 billion US dollars with the IDB, according to the Hispanic Congress members. Bolivia owes the majority, 48 percent, of the five countries total debt to the IDB.

In his speech before the IDB assembly Bolivian president Evo Morales was the first to propose that the bank eliminate some of the debt of the five countries, Guyana, Honduras, Nicaragua, Haiti and Bolivia. But some Latin American countries have reservations including Mexico and Brazil.

Mexico, on the other hand, supports the debt relief package and does not want to be responsible for paying for it, said Mexico´s finance minister Francisco Gil.