The International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned through a Statement from technical staff of the Article IV Consultation mission corresponding to 2024, that Nicaragua must «significantly strengthen the rule of law (and) safeguard judicial independence to support investor confidence».
Although timidly, the mission that was in Nicaragua between November 11 and 22, 2024 alludes to the confiscations carried out by the Ortega-Murillo regime against opponents, activists, journalists and businessmen, as well as the appropriation of assets of Civil Society organizations, including private sector union chambers that were outlawed.
The IMF team told the Nicaraguan dictatorship that «Recent actions, which have affected property rights, and reactions to international sanctions could affect investment decisions.
In the report, the Mission insists, “recommends guaranteeing judicial independence in accordance with the international covenants ratified by Nicaragua; strengthen the transparency of administrative and judicial processes linked to property rights; and guarantee adequate, effective and fair resources in said procedures. It is also recommended to continue implementing initiatives to increase the efficiency and modernization of the judicial system.
Washing up the face of the regime
As is customary in the IMF bureaucracy, this technical mission dedicated a large part of the statement to praising the “economic performance robust» and macroeconomic policies “prudent” of the Managua dictatorship, although at the same time he accepts that, to a large extent, the financial support of the Sandinista autocracy is in the «very solid flow of remittances», which, without saying it, ends up revealing that the bonanza that can be perceived in national commerce is actually a consequence of the flight of around a million people who in recent years have fled, precisely from the poverty that overwhelms the country.
«Nicaragua maintains solid economic performance, supported by prudent macroeconomic policies and very strong remittance flows. The economy remains open and resilient, after facing multiple major shocks since 2018, and in a context of international sanctions and reorientation of official financing,” the statement begins.
The visit of the team of IMF officials, headed by Alina Carare, coincided with the dates on which Ortega submitted to the National Assembly and approved constitutional reforms that pulverize the rule of law and that grant full powers to the presidential couple, including total control of the Executive over the Supreme Court of Justice, the Parliament, the Electoral Council and the General Comptroller’s Office of the Republic (CGR).
But this mission of the Fund is silent about this submission to the Comptroller’s Office and is also silent about the government actions that have banned non-governmental entities that investigated and monitored the public service, and has criminalized free journalism that carries out investigations into the management of money. of the Nicaraguans. The Fund’s technical group rather recognizes that the regime has «improved anti-corruption framework» in the country.
“The authorities have taken actions to improve the anti-corruption framework, in line with previous recommendations, and other measures will need to be aligned with international best practices,” it says, without listing what those other measures would be.
«Efforts to digitize the asset declaration system and adoption of rules to protect whistleblowers are progress welcome,” the report highlights, although it also avoids referring to the imposition of government terror on officials who try to leak to journalists the cases of corruption committed by their superiors in the institutions.
Related news: International organizations, “accomplices” of the Ortega dictatorship: More than US$5,000 million delivered after 2018
The mission reports that it met with senior economic officials, including the president of the Central Bank, Ovidio Reyes; the Vice Minister of Finance, Adrián Chavarría, as well as with businessmen, bank representatives and the international community.
The IMF highlights that the poverty rate continues to decrease, but is still above the regional average. It also projects economic growth of 4 percent by 2025, below the growth reported in 2023, which reached 4.5 percent and a gross domestic product (GDP) of 3.5 percent for next year.
Nicaraguan economy threatened
For the mission, despite the “good moment” that the Nicaraguan macroeconomy is experiencing, it says that there are threats due to factors that escape the dictatorship. “Downside risks include lower global growth, a deterioration in the terms of trade, natural disasters, stricter and broader international sanctions, and a change in immigration policies in the United States.”
Related news: International financiers “must recognize the context of crimes against humanity in Nicaragua,” says Raza e Igualdad
Among the inconsistencies found, the IMF team highlights the failure in fiscal transparency, and also recommends the inspection of companies aligned with the regime with permanent measures to solve the problem.
“The mission also recommends continuing to improve fiscal transparency and oversight of public companies to minimize fiscal risks and identify permanent, sustainable and comprehensive solutions to address imbalances in the social security system,” the report concludes.
