Govt. approached multiple int’l partners for COVID-19 aid – Finance Minister
Responding to concerns that a request to The World Bank for financial aid to combat COVID-19 under its Rapid Response Emergency Facility may have been denied, Finance Minister Winston Jordan yesterday told the state-owned National Communications Network (NCN), in a telephone interview, that the last communication he got from the Bank was that it is “doing the assessment”.
The Minister said that he is not a position to approach the Bank everyday to find out the stage of the assessment, but that it will inform him of any relevant development in due time, and that he will inform the public accordingly.
Nevertheless, Minister Jordan said that “in the meantime”, the Government is not “sitting on [its] laurels”, that it is in talks with every international or bilateral institution that Guyana has friendly relations with for assistance, such as the Pan American Health Organisation (PAHO) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The response by the Minister came after Kaieteur News reported that the Bank had already begun execution of its initial emergency aid operations for 25 key countries, excluding Guyana. The first aid package of US$1.9B included several of Guyana’s regional neighbours.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) had reported Guyana as one of the least prepared countries to tackle the COVID-19 outbreak. It was noted that Argentina, Ecuador and Paraguay, included in this list, are all Guyana’s regional neighbours who are included in the IMF’s report, and are not as ill-prepared as Guyana is.
The IMF had said that the top priority is ensuring that frontline health-related spending is available to protect people’s well-being, take care of the sick, and slow the spread of the virus.
Guyana could benefit from future disbursements, as the Bank noted that it is prepared to deploy up to US$160B over the next 15 months to support COVID-19 measures that will help countries respond to immediate health consequences of the pandemic and bolster economic recovery.
What has been of concern to some is the worry that Guyana’s protracted electoral process could have hurt its ability to secure international aid. But Minister Jordan implored the public not to believe any misinformation or insinuation that the request has been denied.
