Upper House greenlights Argentina's bid to join regional Bank of the South

The Upper House unanimously approved Argentina’s request to join other countries in the continent on the creation of the regional Banco del Sur (Bank of the South) and sent the bill to the Lower House floor. 

The document detailing the creation of the institution, which was signed in 2007 by former presidents Néstor Kirchner (Argentina), Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva (Brazil), Nicanor Duarte Frutos (Paraguay) and Tabaré Vázquez (Uruguay), and current presidents Rafael Correa (Ecuador), Evo Morales (Bolivia) and Hugo Chávez (Venezuela), stipulates that in order to become a member of the new continental financial entity, Argentina must contribute the bank with 2 billion dollars.

The organization’s initial capital will be composed of 20 billion dollars. 

Senator and head of the Foreign Relations Committee Daniel Filmus celebrated the preliminary approval by stating that “it is a great step towards integration and regional development. Also, it is really good to have an organization that finances and assists all member countries of the UNASUR.”

“South American integration must stand for a space in which we get to promote social and economic development for all countries, as we fight differences, poverty and social exclusion,” he concluded.