The president of the Argentine Chamber of Construction (CAMARCO), Gustavo Weiss revealed that the State has a debt of $400,000 million with the sectorcorresponding to about 3,500 works that were underway and that progress was made last year (between September and November). They were all started during the Government of Alberto Fernandezsince by assuming Javier Milei Activity in the sector was almost completely paralyzed, with some exceptions.
“The national government debt It is work carried out in the period September, October and November of last year, because the payment period for public works is 60 days from the presentation of the invoice. That is what was executed in September was due in December and was not paid. In October and November, not to mention. There were some sporadic payments on that debt, but the bulk of the debt remains unpaid, about $400,000 million,” explained Gustavo Weiss at a press conference, within the framework of the annual convention of the Argentine Chamber of Construction (CAMARCO) which was carried out in The Rural of Palermo.
When asked if the The Government made a proposal to the sector to pay the debt it owes to companies, Weiss was categorical: “The answer is nothing”. Upon the arrival of the Milei Government There were 3,500 works underway, according to Weiss, which were paralyzed to put before the fiscal balance, except for some such as reversal of the North Gasduct and now the Coronda Prisonwhich was restarted at the request of the Minister of Security, Patricia Bullrich.
Fiscal surplus: at what cost?
In May, the Government accumulated a financial surplus of $1.18 billion and a primary one of $2.3 billion, according to information provided by the Ministry of Economy. It was the fifth financial surplus in a row, a mark that had not been reached since 2008. However, The Excel does not include the debt of $400,000 million that the Nation maintains with public works companies.
But in the sector it is not only the chainsaw that weighs, there is also the blender.. The first, because of the debt itself. And the second also comes into play since “the Argentine State does not pay interest on the debt, therefore, if they cancel what they owe us from last year, they pay us less and less,” Weiss explained.
Regarding the reasons why the sector is not offered a payment plan, Weiss mentioned that he believes that the Government “It postpones payment because it favors the surplus and it is good for them because the liquefaction is greater.”
A necessary adjustment, but too harsh
“We are the sector that, outside of retirees, is suffering the most from the adjustment,” said Weiss, although he previously said that the “adjustment was necessary,” but he said that, “In any case, it can be argued whether it had to be very deep or a little less.”
The chainsaw to public works meant the destruction of some 100,000 direct jobs since the middle of last year, when the crisis in the sector began. This, in turn, “could generate a potential loss of another 100,000 indirect jobs,” Weiss estimated.
It should be noted that the construction sector is one of those that more jobs generated in Argentina. And, in that sense, the general secretary of the Union of Construction Workers of the Argentine Republic (Uocra), Gerardo Martinezspecified that “So far this year the sector has lost about 130,000 jobs”. Likewise, he pointed out that “That is a direct consequence of the paralysis of more than 3,500 public works throughout the country”.
Public project taken up by the private
The president of the CAMARCO He said, on the other hand, that he presented a draft law to the president Javier Milei for the private sector to resume projects public work that the State began to execute and were left halfway after the paralysis of the sector.
“The project takes into account that a private take the completion of a public work and I think there are some things that are possible,” he analyzed. And he exemplified that one of those projects could be “the Procreate plansince they are homes for the middle class” and would be profitable for the private sector.
“If there is a half-planned building, with State money, the private sector can ask the bank for a loan to finish it and sell it. That income is distributed with the Government proportionally”explained Weiss, who assured that there are people interested in completing this type of work. Now, the Government must review the initiative and if it seems positive, it will present it to Congress.
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