The Minister of Finance, Luis Caputo, signed this Tuesday, together with the Director Representative of the Andean Development Corporation (CAF, for its acronym in Spanish) in Argentina, Andrés Rugeles, an agreement for an amount of 400 million dollars aimed at the financing of the “Paseo del Bajo” Project. The Minister of Transport, Guillermo Dietrich, and on behalf the City of Buenos Aires, Franco Moccia, Minister of Urban Development and Transport, and Martín Mura, Minister of Treasury, also attended the event.
Within that framework, Caputo said that “this loan shows the confidence that the Government of President Mauricio Macri has achieved before the international credit organizations. It constitutes a clear example of the direct benefits for Argentine citizens of a serious and foreseeable economic policy. With this financing we build routes, bridges, and the infrastructure we need to improve the lives of the entire population”.
In addition, Dietrich highlighted: “We are going to make this mega-project come true, which is essential to lower logistics costs and to promote intermodality in freight transportation; with a strong impact in the mobility of the City and the times and traffic safety of long-distance passenger transport. Today we make a step forward, confirming that the National Government and the Government of the City of Buenos Aires have to work together to execute the projects that boost the economy and that change the daily life of Argentine people”.
The objective of the project, which will cost 700 million dollars, consists in improving the urban transit and the mobility system of the City of Buenos Aires by means of the construction of a roadway corridor, which central road is 7 km long. This way, it will improve the north-south and south-north connectivity between the neighborhoods of Puerto Madero and Retiro, inside green spaces that will be developed along the way. Likewise, this infrastructure project will be integrated with the transport system of the metropolitan region, increasing regional competitiveness.
In that sense, Rugeles said that “the CAF is a strategic ally of Argentina. Initiatives like this one promote competitiveness and long-term sustainable growth”, and he added: “The project will allow the separation of the light and heavy transportation, promoting the reduction of logistics costs associated to foreign trade, gas emissions and noise, as well as the improvement of rail security and an important urban impact for the community through the connection between the center of the City and the neighborhood of Puerto Madero”.
The loan, which will have a local contribution of 300 million dollars, establishes a 15-year term with a 4-year grace period. This initiative is part of CAF’s commitment for the development of Argentina, which includes sovereign financing operations of up to 2 billion dollars in the 2016-2019 period for infrastructure works, productive transformation, and social development.