Costa Rica proposed reducing the salaries of directors representing the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) by 34%, as part of the financial containment measures due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Costa Rican government will present the initiative at the next CABEI General Assembly of Governors, which will be held on September 3, according to a statement from the presidency.
“I have proposed to the presidents of the countries represented in CABEI (…) the reduction of the remuneration that the directors of each country receive from this body,” said the Costa Rican president, Carlos Alvarado.
According to Costa Rica, the salary of CABEI directors is exempt from income tax and social charges, and is “several times higher than that of a Minister of Finance or Secretary of Finance in the area, despite the fact that their responsibilities are substantially smaller.”
The salary for these officials was not disclosed; however, the Costa Rican government said it considers this compensation level to be a “distortion.”
“In a region with so much need and in times of pandemic, we must give a message of austerity in the use of the resources of the Central American people,” added Alvarado.
Ottón Solís Fallas represents Costa Rica at the CABEI; Solís himself has reportedly supported the idea of reducing the salary.
CABEI, based in Honduras, has as regional partners Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and the Dominican Republic.
Argentina, Colombia, South Korea, Cuba, Spain, Mexico and Taiwan also participate.
