Loans for over US$90 million granted

(Caracas, September 2, 1991).- Loans and technical cooperation totaling over US$90 million were approved in the 70th meeting of the CAF Board held in Caracas on August 30 chaired by Colombian Economic Development Minister Ernesto Samper.

The Board also authorized the entry as series "B" shareholder of two Venezuelan financial institutions - Banco del Caribe and Banco del Orinoco - which join Banco Mercantil, the first Venezuelan bank to subscribe to this type of share on March 18 this year.

CAF has reserved this type of share for subscription by private subregional banks for the purpose of joint investments and trade promotion. Eleven Andean banks have now formalized their entry and are represented on the Board.

Loans The highest loan approved was for US$70 million for the Development Finance Corporation (COFIDE) of Peru. This is a multisectoral global credit program which receives applications for credit from the fisheries, manufacturing, mining and tourism sectors for purchase and installation of machinery and equipment to build or expand property, improve hotel capacity, build or reequip fishing boats, and finance services related to technology for mining and industrial projects.

For Ecuador two operations were approved: a US$9 million loan for the Ecuadorian Electrification Institute to import goods and services required for a project to superve and control of the national grid. The second loan for US$7,820,00 went to Empresa Estatal Petróleos del Ecuador (PETROECUADOR) to be used to optimize the Shushufindi gas plant.

A private Colombian company, Establecimientos Comerciales Ltda, receives a CAF loan for US$1,900,000 to expand the Hotel Casa Medina.

Bolivia receives a non-reimbursable technical cooperation grant for US$500,000 for the Ministry of Planning and Coordination. The loan will support the privatization program for companies owned by the country’s regional development corporations.

The Andean Parliament receives a loan for US$50,000.

Fight against malaria The Board decided to expand by an additional US$100,000 the technical cooperation grant for the Colombian Foundation for Higher Education to produce 2,400,000 doses of malaria vaccine to immunize 800,000 people in the Andean area.

Production of the vaccine - which had an original cooperation grant from CAF Andean Biotechnology Program for US$389,750 - is now being produced by the Immunology Institute of the San Juan de Dios Hospital in Bogota under the supervision of its creator, Dr. Elkin Patarroyo.

Combating this endemic parasitic illness, which is transmitted by mosquito bite, is very costly, which is why the Corporation is interested in contributing to the application of the synthetic vaccine developed by Dr. Patarroyo.

Andean Automated Information System. Lastly, the Board authorized CAF to allocate up to US$146,200 to install and initiate the Andean Automated Information System, which will have 12 stations for receiving and transmitting up-to-date and reliable economic, commercial, financial and technological information with world scope for the benefit of selected organizations in the public and private sectors of this region.

This project is in response to the need for an Andean information system on market demand for exports, and which offers rapid information to potential investors interested in investing in projects of the Andean Group.