MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Member countries integrate 10 billion USD to the S. Bank

Economy ministers during the meeting

The South American country founders of the South (Development) Bank decided to integrate ten billion US dollar in capital to the budding institution out of an authorized total of 20 billion.

The agreement was reached in Buenos Aires during a meeting of Economy ministers from the countries involved: Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela. However no details were offered as to how the different contributions will be worked out an how much, although Buenos Aires press reports indicate the three main South American economies, Brazil, Argentina and Venezuela will contribute with 2 billion US dollars each. Argentina as host country and seat of one of the branches of the future South Bank was represented by Economy minister Carlos Fernandez; Brazil by Finance minister Guido Mantega and Venezuela by the head of the Bank of Venezuela, Edumar Tovar. The official release points out to the innovative aspects of the multilateral credit organization, which has no parallels and is based on a concept of "equality and democratic participation" and with a consensual management. The final technical drafting of the decisions taken this week will be formalized next month during another meeting, possibly when the Mercosur leaders summit. At the coming summit Argentina will hand the rotating six month chair to Brazil. Ministers also called on other governments from the Unasur, Union of Nations of South America to join the South Bank. Chile, Colombia, Guyana, Peru and Surinam were represented at the meeting in Buenos Aires by observers. The idea of the South Bank, --brain child of Venezuela's Hugo Chavez--, is for the region to have a development financial institution to promote infrastructure and help weaker economies without the "interference or instructions" from other multilateral organizations such as the World Bank, IMF, Inter American Development bank. However all these institutions have anticipated they will willingly collaborate with the new South American bank.