The European Commission has approved a grant of 10 million Euros (approx. EC$30 million) for Antigua and Barbuda. This is a one-time grant and will be funded shortly. Finance Minister Harold Lovell has said the development is, “Yet another indication that our Fiscal Consolidation Programme is the correct way to put us on a path of sustainable development.”
The financing will be provided under the European Union’s Vulnerability Flex (V-Flex) mechanism, which was introduced in August 2009 in the wake of the global financial crisis. The V-Flex provides budget support to the African, Caribbean, and Pacific countries most affected by the world economic downturn.
In order to qualify for the grant, requesting countries must have “a high degree of economic, social and political vulnerability, the right policies in place to fight the crisis and sufficient absorptive capacity as well as a financing gap in their budgets where EU support can make a difference by closing or significantly reducing this gap.” Antigua and Barbuda is the second member of the currency union to be approved for the V-Flex. Grenada has received 5 million Euros.