Program Supports Jamaica’s Sustained Growth, Investment and Job Creation
WASHINGTON – The Honorable Audley Shaw, Minister of Finance and Public Service of Jamaica, and Inter-American Development Bank President, Luis Alberto Moreno, today signed a US$ 200 million loan for a fiscal consolidation program. This represents the largest loan ever approved by the IDP, relative to a country’s GDP, and demonstrates an extraordinary level of confidence in the policies of the Government of Jamaica.
The signing of the program comes at a time when the Government of Jamaica is implementing a bold reform program to strengthen fiscal policy and continuing to improve the country’s prospects for growth. Today’s agreement brings loan approvals this year to more than US$ 400 million, in line with the expected total approvals of around US$ 600 million in 2010. The loan was secured at an interest rate of 1.5 percent, which reflects Minister Shaw’s mandate to shift the country’s loan portfolio to low interest-rate, multinational funding. Earlier this year the IDB approved more than US$ 200 million in programs to support reforms in education, protection of human capital and competitiveness.
“The signing of today’s loan, and the commitment of US$ 600 for the calendar year, signifies the IDB’s utmost confidence in Jamaica,” said Minister Shaw. “Over the past months we have executed a voluntary debt swap, with a registered participation rate of more than 99 percent that has resulted in a significant reduction in interest rates. We are aggressively moving forward to stabilize our finances, attract increased investment and generate more jobs for Jamaicans.”
Minister Shaw emphasized the Government’s strong commitment to sustained fiscal reform and good governance. According to the IDB, the fiscal consolidation program is “designed to support the Government of Jamaica’s efforts to achieve stable sustained growth in a context of sound macroeconomic policy, focusing on increasing tax revenue, streamlining expenditure, and reforming the public sector.”
Together with bilateral and international partners, the Government of Jamaica has taken significant steps to stabilize the economy, and continues to push hard to achieve healthy economic growth during the current fiscal year. With the fiscal consolidation program in place, the major emphasis is attracting new investment to the country and further solidifying economic growth.
Also at the signing were Ambassador Audrey Marks, Ambassador of Jamaica to the United States, Mr. Gerard Johnson, IDB Representative to Jamaica, and Ambassador Richard Bernal, Executive Director of the IDB for the Caribbean.
