WASHINGTON D.C., July 31, 2024 – The World Bank Board of Directors approved a new loan to support Ecuador in improving fiscal sustainability, attracting investment and increasing women's labor market participation.
“This decisive World Bank funding is a demonstration of support for the economic program of President Daniel Noboa's government, whose main objectives include generating quality employment through investments with a climate, social inclusion and gender focus. With financial support from multilateral organizations, Ecuador will be able to advance along the path of solid economic growth and sustainable public finances, enabling us to achieve more and better opportunities for the population," said Juan Carlos Vega, Minister of Economy and Finance.
The new freely available US$700 million credit supports two pillars of the government program. The first seeks to improve the country’s fiscal sustainability. Key actions of this pillar focus on optimizing public resource management and improving government spending efficiency, reinforcing the resilience of public finances at the national and local levels. Additionally, it aims to promote trade and private investment.
The second pillar will contribute to creating green jobs and increasing job opportunities for women, thus promoting a more inclusive, sustainable economy. This goal will be achieved through the implementation of gender equality policies in businesses in an effort to increase female participation in higher productivity sectors and their opportunities for access to management positions.
Additionally, this pillar supports actions to strengthen public-private partnerships, which will help reinforce the legal and regulatory framework to provide greater certainty to investors and entrepreneurs, particularly in the energy sector. It seeks to encourage the adoption of cleaner, more efficient technologies in the sector by creating a favorable environment for investment in projects in solar, wind and geothermal energy, as well as in other renewable resources.
“This loan supports key reforms for the energy transition in Ecuador. These reforms seek to open the electricity sector to investments in renewable energy, helping to diversify energy sources and improve the sector’s resilience to the increase in droughts,” said Issam Abousleiman, World Bank Director for Bolivia, Chile, Ecuador and Peru. “We support the government in its efforts to stabilize the economy and assist the most vulnerable households through the expansion and strengthening of social protection programs,” he said.
Learn more about the work of the World Bank in Latin America and the Caribbean: www.worldbank.org/lac
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