President Oscar Arias announced this week that the Chinese government is offering the equivalent of $50 million to Costa Rica for municipal improvement projects such as roadwork, schools and other public works.
The announcement comes just months after Costa Rica shifted diplomatic recognition to China from Taiwan (TT, June 8), whose 63-year relationship with Costa Rica had yielded hundreds of millions of dollars in loans and donations similar to the assistance just offered by China.
The money will go toward programs of the Institute for Municipal Development (IFAM), a public entity funded by the central government to support to local governments.
There is some uncertainty over whether the $50 million from China will be in the form of a donation or a loan. Statements from the Casa Presidencial have assured reporters that the amount will be donated.
But Finance Minister Guillermo Zúñiga told The Tico Times on Tuesday night that “I still can't confirm even the amount” of the assistance, which will go directly into the central government's 2008 budget.
Zúñiga said the form of the assistance has not been decided upon either, and that the head of China's Central Bank will be visiting Costa Rica next month to discuss what form any potential financial aid would take.
Lang Hu, a spokesman with the Chinese Embassy in Costa Rica, said the Embassy had no comment on the matter at the moment, although he confirmed that China is in talks with the Costa Rican government over possible financial aid. |
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