In four years of mandate, the Government of Mario Abdo Benítez has already used almost 8,000 million dollars of international loans. In the same four-year period, the Horacio Cartes administration used less than 4,000 million dollars.
He economist Paul Herken mentioned on Universo radio that the public debt amounts to almost 15,000 million dollarsof which 13,000 million (85%) is external debt and the rest is national debt.
In this sense, he stressed that in the four years of the government of Mario Abdo Benítez, 7,992 million dollars were used of international loans, which represents an increase of 98% compared to previous periods.
He exemplified that in the five years of the Government of Horacio Cartesthe use of funds from the external debt was 4,735 million dollars. That is, there was a67% increase, equivalent to 3,200 million dollars. “This amount is the difference between what Marito used in four years and what he used Cartes in five years,” she explained.
When making an equitable comparison between both governments, taking only four years of Cartes (used 3,792 million)not including the last year of his term, Herken specified that the difference climbs to 112%, equivalent to 4,200 million dollars, in terms of use of resources from debts. In other words, Marito used much more when compared to the previous government.
“This gives an indication of the dynamics that the use of resources had. Only in 2020, 3,181 million dollars were used. It’s a lot of money. We ask ourselves where the money is, why is it not seen in terms of a real improvement in people’s quality of life?. They concentrated on works that did not have an economic and social impact at the same time. That figure scares me ”, he brandished.
The economist maintained that everything is leading to an increase of the figure of 8,000 million, taking into account that the president still has a year of management left.
On the other hand, Herken stressed that it is important to remember that during the Cartes era the amount of international reserves amply covered the foreign debt (at 124%), that is, there were more international reserves than external debt. Instead, the opposite is currently the case. “Today what we owe in foreign debt represents 76%, when relating to reserves”, he narrowed.
Finally, he said that a guarantee that the country can pay its external debt is that it substantially improves its exports, in addition to having other income. But in Marito’s four years, total exports grew 1.1%, according to the expert. “You have a debt that is growing 112% and an export that grew 1.1% in four years. And you also have international reserves that only cover 76% of the debt”, he added.
In addition to all of the above, there are another 3,000 million dollars approved that this Government can use at any time, without knowing what it is planned for, or when, how much or in what way it would be executed.
