MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

IDB ends annual meeting with agreement to replenish innovation fund

“What we’re witnessing is a region that’s shouldering its own responsibilities,” said IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno.

The Inter-American Development Bank and the Inter-American Investment Corporation wrapped up the annual meeting of their Boards of Governors after reaching an agreement to replenish the Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF), the IDB Group’s innovation lab.

 An ample majority of the IDB Group’s member countries agreed to provide US$ 317 million to ensure the continuity of the MIF, which finances small projects that take unusual risks and test new approaches to combat poverty.

More than half the fresh resources for the MIF will be donated by Latin American and Caribbean countries. Historically, the fund was mostly seeded by North American, European and Asian donor nations.

“What we’re witnessing is a region that’s shouldering its own responsibilities,” said IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno. “Our countries decided to significantly increase MIF’s resources, and that’s in line with these new times. It’s the new Latin American reality.”

Established in the early 1990s, the MIF was a pioneer in supporting the development of microfinance. At present, it focuses on promoting climate-adapted agriculture, inclusive cities and the knowledge economy, seeking to generate income opportunities and raising living standards, especially for marginalized groups and communities.

The Boards of Governors are the top decision-making bodies of the IDB and the IIC. Their members are finance ministers, central bank presidents and other high-ranking officials of the IDB Group’s 48 member countries.

During their sessions, the governors approved the annual reports of the IDB and the IIC. Last year the Bank approved 86 sovereign-guaranteed operations totaling US$9.3 billion. The IIC approved 153 non-sovereign guaranteed operations totaling US$2.3 billion for businesses in the region. These amounts confirm the IDB Group as the leading source of multilateral financing for Latin America and the Caribbean.

The governors also received a Sustainability Report on the operations financed by the IDB Group during 2016, of which US$2.7 billion supported climate change-related goals.