China Eximbank pledges RMB 802,512,402 loan to construct to Trinidad and Tobago Arima Hospital (Linked to Record ID#39946)

Project narrative

In February 2013, the Export-Import Bank of China agreed, in principle, to loan the Government of Trinidad and Tobago RMB 802,512,402 (approximately $120 million USD, $1.85 billion TT) in order to fund the construction of Arima Hospital in the city of Arima, Trinidad and Tobago (from Trinidad and Tobago Senate meeting pp. 26-28). The loan terms are unclear. Construction of the hospital began on May 7, 2015. China Railway Ltd. will be constructing the hospital and UDeCOTT (Urban Development Corporation of Trinidad and Tobago) will act as the executing agency. The hospital will be constructed on the compound of the existing Arima District Health Facility. As of October 2019, the project was not yet complete but was expected to be completed in 2019. According to a document from the Ministry of Health, Arima Hospital Construction is still an ongoing expense and as of May 2019, Arima Hospital is more than 75% completed (Unrevised Senate Debate - Wednesday May 15 2019 pp 34). Additional money around TT $70 million from the TT government is being allotted to finish construction in 2019 (156). China Railway Construction Caribbean Company came under Chinese scrutiny for fraud, but was subsequently cleared. The original China Eximbank loan was never finalized, and does not appear on Trinidadian budget reports alongside other Chinese loans. The hospital was finally completed in June 2020, and began to phase open its doors starting on Monday, June 15th. This was after an opening ceremony on June 2, 2020. In June 2013, during a state visit by President Xi Jinping, China agreed to provide 100 medical professionals over the next three years to the new Arima hospital.(see #39946)