OREANDA-NEWS. Uruguay will improve public services and the interaction between citizens and government with a $35 million loan approved by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).

The program is designed to reduce transaction costs of the interactions by citizens and businesses with the government bureaucracy, by simplifying procedures, expanding the availability of on-line services and promoting access to those services by all citizens, especially those with low incomes.

It is also expected to expand the number of tools that will help the central government and state organizations simplify and digitize their procedures, and make them available online.

Additionally, the program will lay the foundations for a new model in the relationship between the government and citizens, by personalizing services, providing a multichannel focus, strengthening the spaces for citizen participation and collaboration in the management of public services, and significantly increasing the citizens' adoption and use of on-line services.

The principal expected result is an improvement in citizens' satisfaction with their interactions with government and increases in the level of competitiveness by businesses, due to reductions in the costs of transactions and increases in on-line access to services, especially by citizens with fewer years of education.

The IDB credit for $35 million is for 25 years, with a grace period of 5.5 years and an interest rate based on LIBOR. It has a local counterpart contribution of $5 million.

The Inter-American Development Bank is devoted to improving lives. Established in 1959, the IDB is a leading source of long-term financing for economic, social and institutional development in Latin America and the Caribbean.The IDB also conducts cutting-edge research and provides policy advice, technical assistance and training to public and private sector clients throughout the region.