Export Credit Agencies


These government-funded banks give taxpayer money to war profiteers to build mega-projects for mega-profits. They also insure these projects against political instability (read: riots). See also: United States Agency for International Development (USAID). ECAs might just be the dirtiest secrets of globalization.

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Export Credit Agencies and Investment Insurance Agencies, commonly known as ECAs, are public agencies that provide government- backed loans and insurance to private corporations from their home country to do business abroad, particularly in the financially and politically risky developing world. Most industrialized nations have at least one ECA, which is usually an official or quasi-official branch of their government.

ECAs are collectively the largest sources of public financial support for foreign corporate investment in industrial projects in the developing world. It is estimated that ECAs support about twice the amount of oil, gas and mining projects as do all Multilateral Development Banks such as the World Bank Group combined. Half of all new greenhouse gas-emitting industrial projects in developing countries have some form of ECA support.

ECAs also finance large scale dams, mining projects, road development in pristine tropical forests, oil pipelines, chemical and industrial facilities, and forestry and plantation schemes, to name a few. Many of these projects displace communities and destroy livelihoods, leaving affected people with little or no recourse.

ECAs often back such projects even though the World Bank Group and other multilateral banks find them too risky and potentially harmful to support. ECAs are some of the biggest sources of public financing for projects with harmful environmental and social impacts in the developing world. ECAs account for between US$50 - $70 billion annually in support for large industrial and infrastructure projects in these countries.

ECAs account for the single biggest component of developing country debt. In recent years they accounted for some 24% of total debt and 56% of debt owed to official agencies. ECA financing often pushes countries to create debt to pay back loans for projects that are inconsistent with the goals of sustainable development. Thus, to the extent that excessive or inappropriate developing country debt loads shackles the sustainable development process in these countries,

CAs are frequently involved in supporting the export of arms and military equipment to war-torn countries For example, UK-made Hawk fighter jets and US-made Black Hawk helicopters are exported to Indonesia, Colombia and other countries known for their repressive regimes. These sales are facilitated by ECAs.

Once these deadly weapons are out of the control of the exporters' hands and into the control of the government, these arms can be used to intimidate and kill innocent people. This not only creates human rights nightmares, but increases the likelihood of conflict, the risk of war.

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