Colombian President Welcomes News of Membership in BRICS' NDB

Colombian President Gustavo Petro welcomed the June 19 announcement that Colombia has been admitted as a member of the New Development Bank (NDB). Colombia had applied to join when Petro met with NDB President Dilma Rousseff on May 15, during Petro’s visit to China. A short video issued by the Office of the Presidency explained that joining the bank is important “because Colombia gains a new source of revenue to finance development initiatives. No longer are we exclusively dependent on the World Bank or the International Monetary Fund, but have expanded our sources of funds with a bank which promotes development projects and offers new modalities for debt and investment.”