On February 5, Executive President Luciana Botafogo received a delegation from the European Investment Bank (EIB) at the FONPLATA's headquarters in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. The delegation was made up by Ms. Kristin Lang, Head of Division – Public Sector – Latin America and Caribbean, and Ms. María Vargas, Principal Advisor – Public Sector – Latin America and Caribbean.

In June 2017, the banks signed their first Memorandum of Understanding, committing their efforts to promote development and integration in the region. As a consequence, EIB granted FONPLATA a line of credit of up to USD 60 million to support multisectoral projects focused on extreme poverty and climate resilience in the River Plate Basin.

The purpose of the current meeting was to explore new co-financing opportunities, as well as to assess and, possibly, pursue cooperation opportunities related to climate resilience, sustainable cities, and poverty alleviation.

This visit was also part of the second Memorandum of Understanding signed by both banks in Brasilia in May 2023, in the framework of the EU Global Gateway Initiative to contribute to projects that improve global and regional connectivity in the digital, climate, transport, health, energy, and education sectors.

During the mission, a series of meetings were held in which FONPLATA informed the EIB of important events taking place at a time when the Bank celebrates its 50th anniversary, such as the ratification of Argentina's willingness to continue as a full member and the entry into force of the new Articles of Agreement.

In turn, the EIB presented the EU—Latin America and Caribbean Investment Agenda with the aim of finding initiatives and sectors where both institutions can work in a coordinated manner, through various financial instruments, such as facilities and lines of credit, for the implementation of impact projects.

Finally, the representatives of FONPLATA and the EIB shared the opportunities and challenges they found in the countries of the region when designing and implementing projects focused on climate change adaptation and gender and diversity, priority areas for both institutions.

02/08/2024