The 65th Ordinary Meeting of the Common Market Council (CMC) and Summit of Presidents of the MERCOSUR member and associated countries took place on December 5 and 6 (Thursday and Friday) in Montevideo, Uruguay. At the event, FONPLATA’s Vice President of Operations and Countries, Eliana Dam, spoke about the Bank's growth, emphasizing its importance, particularly as MERCOSUR member countries are also part of FONPLATA. She also highlighted the collaborative efforts and support provided to the regional bloc.

Eliana Dam mentioned that 2024 was a key year to set a new structure for the Bank's growth in the medium to long term. She pointed out the portfolio’s 230% growth in the last eight years and emphasized the Bank’s cost competitiveness compared to other multilateral organizations. She also noted that, thanks to its good governance and prudent financial management, FONPLATA has obtained excellent credit ratings and raised capital directly in Switzerland and Japan, in accordance with its sustainable debt framework.

The Vice President of Operations and Countries highlighted four significant events. She began by discussing the Bank's support to MERCOSUR, emphasizing the trusteeship of FOCEM's resources and the submission of biannual reports to the Commission of Permanent Representatives of the MERCOSUR.

She then turned to the recent signing of the Technical and Financial Complementation Agreement with MERCOSUR stating: “I am pleased to inform you that [...] we are making progress with the Ministry of Planning and Budget of Brazil, specifically with its National Technical Unit of FOCEM, in structuring projects prioritized by COFIEX. It is also worth noting that, after 12 years, Brazil submitted a funding request to FOCEM. FONPLATA is proud to have contributed to the preparation of the Ring Road project presented by the Municipality of Amambai, Mato Grosso do Sul, which has been recommended for approval.”

Next, the Vice President of Operations and Countries highlighted the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed this week with MERCOSUR. The MoU establishes a framework for cooperation to support the MERCOSUR Social Institute in the 2025–2026 Biannual Work Program. This includes making non-reimbursable technical cooperation resources available to strengthen social protection and development systems under the Youth and Borders Project, Phase II.

Additionally, she mentioned the approval by FONPLATA of a new line of credit called “Support for Regional Integration and MERCOSUR”, which aims to encourage financing for regional integration projects and provide preferential financial conditions to countries submitting projects in this area.

In her closing remarks, the Vice President of Operations and Countries stated: “At FONPLATA we are aware of our role in the history of regional integration: we are the closest bank to the MERCOSUR countries. Our advantage lies in our ability to be useful, flexible, and close, meeting financing and technical assistance demands, complementing efforts, and creating synergies with other development actors.”

During the meeting of MERCOSUR heads of state, Uruguay will hand over the bloc’s temporary presidency to Argentina.

12/06/2024