Politics: president Tabaré Vázquez began term as Uruguay’s president on March 2015 with a new fresh infrastructure long term plan. The country has shown a strong political and social stability, supported by a consolidated democracy and strong legal certainty. Nowadays, the political system has three major parties which have taken turns in office.
Economy: Uruguay economy has achieved the longest period of growth in history, by accumulating 14 years of uninterrupted growth of its GDP - an annual average expansion of 4.5% between 2003 and 2016. This expansion was accompanied by a growth of the GDP per capita, which Uruguay's GDP per capita went from US$ 5,000 in 2005 to almost US$ 15,500 in 2015, and will be around US$ 20,000 as from 2019. This has allowed Uruguay's economy to stand out as having the highest GDP per capita in Latin America (measured in current USD).
International Support: The IADB is the main source of international financing in the country. The national authorities and the Bank have identified the following strategic areas of cooperation: transport; energy; water, sanitation, and solid waste. Actual portfolio has loans totaling US$ 2.23 billion. The World Bank Group (comprised of three institution: IBRD, IFC and MIGA) has a portfolio of 12 projects in Uruguay totaling around US$1.347 billion. CAF has approved operations in favor of Uruguay for USD 959 million of which 94% (USD 905 million) corresponded to sovereign risk operations and 6% (USD 54 million) to non-sovereign risk and non-reimbursable cooperation operations. It renewed the contingent credit line granted to the Ministry of Economy and Finance for USD 500 million, with the purpose of supporting the public debt management strategy through a preventive financing instrument.
Location: Uruguay is located in the eastern part of the South American Cone. It borders to the northeast with Brazil (state of Rio Grande do Sul), to the west with Argentina (provinces of Entre Ríos and Corrientes) and has coasts in the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast and on the Río de la Plata to the south. It covers 176,215 km², being the second smallest country in South America in terms of territory, after Suriname.
Infrastructure Opportunities: next years Uruguayan government plans to develop the following:
|
| Million USD |
| Energy | Regasification plant; electricity transmission grid; wind, solar and biomass generation | 4,230 |
| Roads | Reconstruction, rehabilitation and development of national highways | 2,360 |
| Social infrastructure | Early childhood centers, schools, improvement of hospital and prison infrastructure | 1,870 |
| Housing | Social housing | 1,320 |
| Communications | Telecommunications network | 750 |
| Water and sanitation | Sewerage system, drinking water, wastewater treatment | 550 |
| Ports | Wharves, dredging, port terminals | 550 |
| Rail | Central Railway | 12,000
|
| Others | Development fund for the inland provinces of the country, cement plants, other works | 380 |
| Total |
| 24,010 |