The decentralized autonomous governments have been working with extended budgets until the authorities elected on February 5, assume their functions and proceed to approve the budget that will govern the first year of their respective administrations. However, most municipal institutions must deal with a lack of resources.
In the case of the municipality of Loja, the Zonal Manager of the Development Bank-BDE, Jorge Zárate, told this newspaper that the municipality does not have credit capacity, due to the lack of Financial Efficiency. “A GAD has to be efficient in its economic income, as well as in reducing its spending. When a municipality reduces its staff payroll or in turn, collects more portfolio and increases taxes and taxes; it also improves its indebtedness capacity”, said the official.
Councilor Pablo Burneo commented that one of the problems for the lack of credit is the high subsidy for garbage collection and drinking water, the amount of which is over USD 5 million per year, so no credit institution will provide more resources to the institution. “The municipality does not have debt capacity, and the new mayor will not have the resources to carry out the work,” he ratified.
The BDE Manager indicated that any request for credit or allocation of profits to decentralized autonomous governments must necessarily have the qualification of their economic management. “If a municipality has zero debt capacity, it will hardly access a non-reimbursable fund,” he specified.
For his part, the mayor-elect, Franco Quezada, said that he will maintain the payroll of municipal officials, but he will optimize human resources to improve institutional efficiency. “I know that many people have been hired irresponsibly and that we are going to audit and with my support team, I have no commitment or ties,” he specified, when asking him if he would give work spaces to his campaign team.
In addition, faced with economic conditions, Mayor Quezada announced the creation of the “Local, national and international Management and Cooperation Unit.” “This will be the unit that obtains all the resources to execute all the projects that we have proposed in our government program and what Loja needs,” he specified.
He also said that non-reimbursable resources from public and private organizations and NGOs will be channeled to finance security works, environmental sanitation, tourism and entrepreneurship. “We are going to have a team made up of 10 people, experts in resource management in international organizations,” confirmed the burgomaster-elect.
The BDE, on its website, discloses the different credit products for decentralized autonomous governments, therefore, in terms of Water and Sanitation, it has a national investment program for Water, Sanitation and Solid Waste, the same as It is financed by the Inter-American Development Bank, IDB, and has been created to increase and improve services, “with emphasis on intermediate municipalities,” as is the case of Loja.
However, among the Eligibility Criteria to access this type of international financing and non-reimbursable resources, an economic evaluation is requested, proof of users’ knowledge of possible rate increases and a study of the financial feasibility of the investment. “Demonstrate that the service will generate or receive sufficient funds to meet its financial commitments and cover the costs of administration, operation and maintenance, as well as depreciation”, reads the text of the criteria to access financing. WM. (YO)
