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UN, Lender CAF Seek $350M Loan for Maduro Government

Reuters

   CARACAS, VENEZUELA - Latin American lender CAF and the United Nations
   are seeking to provide financing to the government of Venezuelan
   President Nicolas Maduro to improve electricity supply in the
   crisis-stricken nation that is suffering from chronic blackouts, the
   two institutions told Reuters.
   Lawmakers in Venezuela's congress have proposed a financing mechanism
   under which CAF would provide $350 million to make improvements to the
   ailing power sector, with the U.N. Development Program carrying out the
   investments.
   But the proposal has created a deep divide within the country's
   opposition between those who say the proposal will provide humanitarian
   assistance and those who oppose it because it will provide new funding
   for Maduro's government,which is widely accused of corruption and
   mismanagement.
   "The project is a CAF loan to the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
   which is requested by the Ministry of Finance and has to be approved by
   the National Assembly," a U.N. official wrote in an emailed response to
   questions from Reuters.
   CAF in an emailed response to questions confirmed that the loan would
   go to Venezuela's government.

   System of controls
   No funds wouldbe transferred to state electrical authorities, the U.N.
   official said, and the financing mechanism would havea system of checks
   and balances "to ensure that the resources are only used for this
   purpose."
   Though the amount would berelatively small, its approval could pave the
   way for Maduro to receive additional international financing down the
   road. That could eventually undercut the effects of U.S. sanctions,
   which block American citizens from lending money to Maduro as part of
   an effort to push him from power.
   Draft legislation for the proposal does not describe the financial
   conditions of the loan, which are usually provided to the legislature
   before such financing is approved.
   Venezuela's information ministry, which fields questions on behalf of
   the finance ministry, did not respond to an email seeking comment.

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