• TRANSPARENCY: The new Mexican government program to provide one million low-interest microloans for small businesses affected by the coronavirus shock -including firms in the informal economy- lacks transparency surrounding eligibility criteria, according to experts.
• CONFUSION: Announced by President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, the program would provide US $1,000 loans to one million small businesses. The only selection criteria known is that the firms would be selected from a census of previous government’s social program beneficiaries.
• DOUBTS: “The loans program is not viable. It’s all talk and good intentions. Somehow there are many things that President (López Obrador) says and very few that are actually feasible”, said Javier López, a law specialist at Mexico City’s La Salle University.
• DETAILS: Thus far, President López Obrador has said that the microloans would be sent by three private banks (Banorte, Santander, and Azteca) and that they would pay a 6.5% annual interest rate. The microloans program is part of Mexico’s frugal economic plan against the coronavirus shock.
