The Diplomat
Spain has renewed its agreement with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) of the World Bank Group, the leading international institution dedicated exclusively to the private sector in developing countries, with the aim of boosting private sector investment in Latin America and Africa.
The First Vice President and Minister of Economic Affairs, Nadia Calviño, held a meeting this Wednesday with the Director General of the International Finance Corporation (IFC), Makhtar Diop, within the framework of the annual meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank in Washington. Within this framework, Spain signed a new replenishment of four million euros to the Bilateral Technical Assistance Fund (TAFT), a bilateral fund aimed at financing prior actions for the design of investment projects in developing countries and in key areas such as the fight against climate change, the financial sector or the promotion of renewable energies, as reported by the Ministry of Economic Affairs in a press release.
Spanish contributions to this fund total 15 million euros with the new replenishment. The new cooperation agreement, according to the Ministry, will make it possible to finance IFC projects, create better conditions for attracting private capital and strengthen supply chains and local communities, thereby helping to boost economic recovery in Latin America and Africa.
Spain is IFC’s third largest partner in Europe, after France and the United Kingdom, with $3.5 billion (3.6 billion euros) in financing, and a key partner for investments in Latin America and Europe. Since 1998, IFC’s partnership with Spain has financed a wide range of consulting and infrastructure, financial sector development, investment climate and other projects around the world. IFC also partners with multinationals and mid-sized companies that are interested in investing in emerging markets. As of June 2022, IFC had a committed long-term investment portfolio of nearly $2.8 billion with Spanish partners spread across various sectors and regions.
Calviño in the US
Nadia Calviño maintains this week an intense work agenda in the United States on the occasion of the annual assemblies of the IMF and the World Bank Group and the G20 and G7 meetings, among others. The activities began on Tuesday, with a meeting in New York with international investors and several meetings with large companies in the audiovisual sector. On Wednesday, Calviño held a working meeting with the Managing Director of the IMF, Kristalina Georgieva, participated in the meeting of the Coalition of Finance Ministers for Climate Change, attended the National Day party at the Spanish Cultural Center in Washington, met with the director of the World Bank’s IFC, Makhtar Diop, and participated in the G7 meeting with African countries, donors and creditors and in the G20 working dinner.
Yesterday, the Vice President participated in the G20 meeting and met with the Minister of Economy of Argentina, Sergio Massa. In the evening, Nadia Calviño chaired the introductory session of the International Monetary and Financial Committee (IMFC), which sets the roadmap for IMF policies and recommendations. As chair of the IMFC, the vice-president also held bilateral meetings with different members of the committee ahead of the various meetings she is chairing this week. The IMFC, which meets twice a year, advises and reports to the IMF Board of Governors on the surveillance and management of the international monetary and financial system, and its discussions and conclusions guide the IMF’s work program. Calviño is the first Spanish minister to chair this Committee.
In addition, the Vice-President will participate today in the meeting with the Eurogroup ministers together with the Secretary General of the U.S. Treasury, Janet Yellen, and will later chair the IMFC plenary session, after which she will hold a joint press conference with the Managing Director of the IMF, Kristalina Georgieva.
