World Bank evaluates up to $5 billion financing package for Venezuela contingent on multilateral debt clearance

Susana Cordeiro Guerra, the World Bank’s vice president for Latin America and the Caribbean, disclosed during the IMF and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok that the institution has prepared a project portfolio combining public and private sector operations to support structural reforms and critical social infrastructure. The financing framework contemplates up to $2 billion in the first year if Venezuela regularizes its standing with multilateral creditors. The bank has not extended credit to Venezuela since 2005, and any new operations require board approval beyond clearing the technical prerequisites.

The identified initial operation targets water and electricity infrastructure, sectors that have experienced severe deterioration. Cordeiro Guerra emphasized that the proposed amounts represent potential financing subject to institutional requirements rather than approved resources. Venezuela currently holds more than $2 billion in overdue capital and interest payments to the Inter-American Development Bank, alongside arrears with the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean. Resolving these obligations constitutes a mandatory precondition for accessing World Bank funding.

The institution resumed dialogue with Venezuelan authorities in April under interim president Delcy Rodríguez’s administration. Beyond the lending pipeline, World Bank technical staff are collaborating with Venezuelan counterparts on developing a sustainable macrofiscal framework and providing advisory support for external debt restructuring. Private sector estimates place Venezuela’s total external debt near $170 billion, a figure encompassing both sovereign and Petróleos de Venezuela obligations.

The rapprochement occurs within a reconfigured relationship dynamic with the United States, whose engagement has gained prominence in facilitating renewed contact between Venezuela and international financial institutions. The World Bank’s regional strategy includes similar lending packages for Colombia targeting expenditure efficiency, energy sector strengthening and health system support, though specific amounts remain undisclosed. Argentina secured a $2 billion commercial loan in June with 95 percent World Bank guarantee and maintains negotiations for additional 2027 financing.

Cordeiro Guerra stated the institution seeks to reward reformers implementing fiscal consolidation and macroeconomic stability measures, citing Paraguay, Dominican Republic, El Salvador and Panama as regional examples maintaining above four percent annual growth through private sector-oriented reforms.