Bolivia's Ministry of Economy and Public Finance challenges the IMF Article IV assessment and points to a USD 1.8bn legislative credit blockade

Bolivia's Ministry of Economy and Public Finance published a response to the International Monetary Fund’s 2025 Article IV report on Bolivia, disputing parts of the IMF’s assessment and arguing that key positives were omitted or understated. It highlighted the IMF report’s acknowledgement, as characterised by the ministry, that the Plurinational Legislative Assembly has blocked more than USD 1.8bn in external credits, constraining access to foreign funding and resulting in negative net transfers. The ministry said 2024 GDP growth was affected by extraordinary shocks including prolonged road blockades and extreme weather events such as droughts and fires linked to El Niño. It cited an external public debt balance of 24.8% of GDP as of April 2025 and stated that the debt profile remains largely concessional and that external debt service continues to be met on time. Net international reserves have recovered since September 2023 and, based on Central Bank of Bolivia figures referenced in the statement, reached USD 2.618bn in the first four months of 2025, supported by measures including gold purchases, foreign-currency bond issuance and export incentives. The note also pointed to a loan delinquency rate below the regional average and continued growth in deposits and bank lending, which it linked to supervision by the Financial System Supervision Authority.