Uruguay Secures $300 Million to Boost Investment and Better Jobs

Economy and Finance Minister Gabriel Oddone described stronger financial and fiscal resilience as a strategic priority for a country with Uruguay’s exposure to external shocks.

Uruguay has secured US$300 million in World Bank financing to support reforms designed to attract private investment, improve employment opportunities and strengthen public finances. Approved by the bank's Board of Executive Directors, the package backs the country's effort to turn its economic stability and strong institutions into more productive businesses and better jobs, with particular attention to people who face barriers to formal employment.

For a small, open economy exposed to changes beyond its borders, maintaining stability is only part of the task of building lasting prosperity. Uruguay's next challenge is to make it easier for businesses to invest, compete and expand, creating opportunities that reach young people, women and vulnerable communities. The financing connects that growth agenda with changes to government finances intended to help the country respond to economic shocks.

Making It Easier for Businesses to Invest and Trade

The supported measures include ratification of the trade agreement with the European Union, simpler customs procedures and wider access to business financing, addressing several conditions that influence whether companies can reach customers and pursue new projects. Investment incentives will be redirected toward projects with higher levels of innovation, placing greater emphasis on activities that can improve productivity and strengthen Uruguay's competitiveness.

Economy and Finance Minister Gabriel Oddone described stronger financial and fiscal resilience as a strategic priority for a country with Uruguay's exposure to external shocks. He pointed to the World Bank's role in helping translate those priorities into practical solutions, identifying reforms that improve competitiveness at the business level as the next challenge. The focus is on building from the country's stable economic footing to improve the conditions in which firms operate and make investment decisions.

Connecting Economic Growth With Better Employment

The employment measures place youth, women and vulnerable populations at the centre of efforts to improve access to formal work, making the quality and reach of job opportunities an explicit part of the reform programme. Attracting investment is one element of that effort, with the broader package seeking to create conditions in which business growth can support more productive employment and wider participation in the economy.

World Bank Vice President for Latin America and the Caribbean Susana Cordeiro Guerra described Uruguay's stability and institutional strength as a foundation that few countries in the region have achieved. She presented the operation as support for the next stage of development, in which greater competitiveness and productivity translate into more quality jobs. That connection between economic performance and employment is central to the programme's purpose, with business reforms and access to formal work addressed within the same financing package.

Strengthening Public Finances and Preparing for Shocks

Changes to Uruguay's fiscal framework include new rules governing debt and the fiscal balance, greater autonomy for the Autonomous Fiscal Council and measures to reinforce the pension system's long-term sustainability. The programme incorporates international standards for taxing large multinational enterprises, bringing another part of the public finance framework into the reform effort. These measures support the government's capacity to manage its finances as it pursues investment and employment growth.

The financing includes a Deferred Drawdown Option, a feature that allows Uruguay to access liquidity quickly if an economic shock creates a need for funds, helping the country respond without disrupting its reform programme. Named "Strengthening Competitiveness, Private Investment, and Employment," the project carries a variable spread, a repayment period of 6.5 years and a 2.5-year grace period. Its central test will be how the supported reforms help turn Uruguay's existing strengths into investment, productive businesses and better employment opportunities.