The Inter-American Development Bank today announced the approval of a $6 million loan to Colombia to strengthen the institutional capabilities and structure of the national Congress.
The resources will help finance the modernization of procedures and operations, including enhancement of fiscal mechanisms and oversight, as well as the improvement of the links between Congress* and Colombian society.
The program includes a review of the process by which laws are drafted, with the goal of improving their quality and legal certainty, and the placement in operation of a new organization structure and the implementation of new parliamentary rules and procedures.
Other components of the program are personnel training and professional development, the provision of more and better information to the public, preparation of a master plan for computerization, and the creation of a congressional documentation center.
The IDB loan is for a 20-year term, with a 3 and 1/2 year grace period, at the variable annual interest rate, now 6.98 percent. Local counterpart funds total $4 million.