Development Banks Finance Security in Latin America

(ANSA) – QUITO, 20 AUGUST – The World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the Latin American Development Bank (CAF) have signed a memorandum of understanding to help finance the fight against organized crime and promote a safer environment in Latin America. The initiative was signed in the framework of the Security Summit, which closes today in Guayaquil, Ecuador, and which sees the participation of delegates from thirteen countries and international organizations. Describing the meaning of the initiative, the president of the IDB, Ilan Goldfajn, explained: “Latin America and the Caribbean face a serious security crisis driven by increasingly organized and regional crime. Through this new collaboration between the IDB, the World Bank and the CAF, we are building bridges to coordinate efforts among countries, multilateral development banks and other partners, to help ensure a safer environment”. On the other hand, the vice president of the World Bank for Latin America and the Caribbean, Carlos Felipe Jaramillo, stressed that violence and organized crime in the region are “serious obstacles to development. Addressing these critical challenges – he noted – is essential to stimulate economic growth and eradicate poverty”. The executive president of the Caf, Sergio Díaz-Granados, instead recalled an “alarming figure”: “with less than 9% of the global population, Latin America and the Caribbean – he highlighted – are responsible for a third of the total number of homicides in the world”. (ANSA).