Statement by H.E. Mario Marcel - On behalf of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay - 105th Meeting of the Development Committee

Jul 19, 2026

Statement by H.E. Mario Marcel, Minister of Finance of Chile, delivered on behalf of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay at the 105th Development Committee meeting in Washington, DC (April 22, 2022). The address highlights how the heterogeneity of the Latin American and Caribbean region, compounded by the pandemic and the war in Ukraine, demands renewed policy buffers and restoration of citizens’ trust. It outlines support for World Bank Group crisis response efforts and argues for actions to make debt work for development, improve debt transparency, and strengthen international debt restructuring frameworks.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages5

Reading Time13 min

Key regional challenges

Pandemic impacts and war in Ukraine

Crisis response and recovery priorities

Making debt work for development

Debt accumulation and fiscal burdens

Future actions: vulnerability and frameworks

International financial architecture

Debt restructuring and transparency

Public Disclosure Authorized Public Disclosure Authorized DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE (Joint Ministerial Committee of the Boards of Governors ofthe Bank and the Fund on the Transfer of Real Resources to Developing Countries) ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTH MEETING WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 22, 2022 DC/S/2022-0027 April 22, 2022 Statement by H.E. Mario Marcel Minister of Finance Chile On behalf of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay Statement by H.E. Mario Marcel Minister of Finance Chile On behalf of Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay 105th Meeting of the Development Committee April 22, 2022 Washington, DC The Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region is heterogenous but mostly composed by Middle-Income Countries (MICs). Pockets of poverty and high inequality are unresolved problems that in part explain the heterogeneity. The pandemic has hit LAC the hardest among all regions, both in terms of economic growth and COVID19-related deaths, revealing that the region was relatively ill-prepared to face a sanitary shock that turned out to depress global growth at a scale not seen in decades. The recent Russian invasion to Ukraine, with its impact in energy and food prices, adds more complexity to the region and to the world. Despite the adversity, many economies are recovering fast. One important challenge coming out of the crisis will be to acknowledge the need to rebuild buffers, and most importantly, gain back the citizens’ trust to implement the policies that will sustain the recovery. World Bank Group Response to Global Impacts ofthe War in Ukraine As the paper suggests, the global repercussions of the war are aggravating the ongoing consequences of the pandemic and climate change. We are concerned that developing countries and MICs in which scarring effects are more prevalent will be further hit by second order economic, fiscal, and financial impacts as the war affects the global recovery. We strongly support the 15-month crisis response envelope of $170 billion for the period from April 2022 to June 2023, in support of Ukraine’s reconstruction and other developing countries affected by the crisis, including an initial crisis response of $50 billion. We look forward to the forthcoming “Global Crisis Response Framework Paper”. We are particularly interested on how the WBG will boost its financial capacity to respond to this crisis. Making debt work for development High levels of public debt in LAC have imposed fiscal burdens to governments, particularly in those with weaker buffers. Quoting President David Malpass: “With too many developing countries facing record levels of external and domestic debt, we cannot afford to wait any longer. The world´s poorest urgently need deep debt relief, enhanced debt transparency and a rebalancing of creditor/debtor powers.” Within this context, we welcome the World Bank/IMF paper which addresses a key challenge that most developing countries are facing today. We certainly agree with the importance of actions needed to address the risks to economic development and macroeconomic stability. We also agree with the efforts ofthe WBG and the IMF to help countries improve fiscal policy, strengthen debt transparency and debt management frameworks, and expand access to long-term finance, but we think that more can be done, especially in addressing MICs, for some of which the crisis has uncovered significant financial vulnerabilities. How did we get there? The document shows a systematic debt accumulation during the last decade, previous to the pandemic, both at government and private level, in particular among Emerging Market and Developing Economies (EMDEs) . One of the causes for the debt wave, that accelerated since 2020, were the low interest rates, combined with an extended belief among many authorities that after the global financial crisis, output was below potential, and therefore this justified both government and priv

FAQs

What major shocks affecting Latin America and the Caribbean are emphasized in the statement?

The statement cites the pandemic as the hardest hit regional shock in terms of growth disruption and COVID-19 deaths, and notes that the war in Ukraine adds complexity through higher energy and food prices.

What does the statement support regarding the World Bank Group’s crisis response?

It strongly supports the 15-month crisis response envelope of $170 billion (April 2022 to June 2023), including an initial crisis response of $50 billion for Ukraine reconstruction and other affected developing countries.

Why does the statement argue that debt policy must be improved for development?

It explains that high public debt creates large debt servicing burdens that reduce fiscal space for social needs, and it highlights how debt distress and vulnerability in many middle-income countries are increasingly exposed.

Jul 19, 2026

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