Regional director of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) Latin America and the Caribbean, Gabriel Goldschmidt says the organization has a line of credit for up to US$500 million for the Dominican Republic in the next four years. The IFC is the part of the World Bank Group focused on private-sector development in developing countries.
Goldschmidt was in the Dominican Republic last week to contact clients and determine how to continue contributing to the objectives and development of the Dominican Republic, as reported in Listín Diario. During his visit to the country, he met with President Danilo Medina.
IFC funds can be used for the construction of infrastructure works in a public-private partnership or through the development of purely private projects.
Goldschmidt told Listin Diario in an interview that the entity views positively the active business sector and the many public-private interactions in the Dominican economy. He mentioned the thriving financial sector and free trade zones and small and medium-sized enterprises.
“From our perspective, and even comparatively in the region, the Dominican Republic has an advantageous position in terms of the broad participation of the private sector in the economy and that means that we, as IFC in the Dominican Republic, have been able to contribute with a number of companies and sectors over the years,” he said.
During the conversation, at the World Bank offices in Santo Domingo, the IFC director for the LAC region emphasized the commitment of the international financial institution with the Dominican Republic to contribute to the development of the economy, support the private sector, increase its participation in the economy and meet the sector’s needs as these arise.
In the last 20 years, the entity has provided US$1.2 billion to this country, where it has contributed with most of the banks for projects such as technological transformation; and with other companies, indirectly, such as SMEs, which are the largest contributors of jobs, explained Goldschmidt.
Taking into account IFC’s reforms and demand for funds, IFC plans to finance from $250 million to $500 million over the next four years, an amount that will expand investments from US$1 billion to US$2 billion, Goldschmidt told Listín Diario.
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Listin Diario
9 May 2019