Bolivia’s Central Bank: Latest IMF loan violated the country´s legal framework

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – An International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan that was “irregularly managed” by Bolivia’s former interim president Jeanine Áñez has been sent back, the country’s Central Bank announced on Wednesday, February 17th.

According to the bank, the loan of US$356.7 million had jeopardised “the country’s sovereignty and economic interests” through a rapid financing instrument (RFI), which placed conditions on fiscal, financial, exchange rate and monetary duties.

The loan was approved by the IMF last April, with the Bolivian Executive saying that it was necessary for “urgently required medical spending and relief measures, while addressing the country’s balance of payments needs.”

But the bank said that it violated the Bolivian legal framework and added additional costs to the economy, which stand at US$24.3 million.

The Bolivian government has announced investigations that could lead to the prosecution of all officials involved in the “illegal arrangement” with the IMF.

Prior to the November 2019 ouster of president Evo Morales, the country had not signed a deal with the IMF since 2005. Its financial independence, according to former administrations, allowed economic improvements, nationalisations and investment in public services and social programs.

Morales’s Movement Towards Socialism (MAS) party swept to landslide victories in both presidential and parliamentary elections last October.

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