Mexico estimates more than $3.4 billion for repairs after Hurricane Otis

The Mexican Government estimated this Wednesday at 61,313 million pesos (more than 3,400 million dollars or 3,224 million euros) the cost for repairs and social support in the southern state of Guerrero after the impact of Hurricane Otis, which left 46 dead after making landfall last week.

This is the first official calculation of the Government of Andrés Manuel López Obrador, who offered in his morning press conference a recovery plan with 20 points, which includes 10,000 million pesos (more than 555 million dollars) to restore public infrastructure in Acapulco , the most impacted city.

“The cost of the investment, which we have been working for several days to bring as close as possible to the needs, is 61,313 million pesos and is distributed among the 20 points indicated by the President of the Republic, that is the investment amount” “said the Secretary of the Treasury, Rogelio Ramírez de la O.

In addition to public reconstruction in Acapulco, the Government will allocate the largest amount of resources, 10,471 million pesos (581.7 million dollars), in direct cash delivery to affected homes, which will receive up to 60,000 pesos (3,333 dollars).

On the other hand, the Government will exempt the payment of value added taxes (VAT) and income taxes (ISR) until February, which will cost 9,109 million pesos (506 million dollars).

It will also give a six-month extension in the payment that companies and employees make to the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), and to the housing institutes for workers (Infonavit and Fovissste), which will cost 9,001 million pesos (500 million Dollars).

For the private sector, the Ministry of Finance will support 373 hotels with the payment of half of the interest they contract with commercial banks, which would cost 5,000 million pesos (almost 278 million dollars).

And to the victims, the Government will deliver a basket of basic products to 250,000 families for three months, for which it will allocate 3,250 million pesos (180.5 million dollars), in addition to 4,000 million pesos (222.2 million dollars ) in a package of household goods, such as stoves and washing machines.

The rest of the resources are distributed in areas such as social programs and forgiveness of electricity payments.

President López Obrador, who has promised to “get Acapulco back on its feet” by Christmas, asserted that “there are unlimited resources when it comes to benefiting the people.”

“It is important to say, in general, that we have a budget to finance all these needs, these programs, and that we do not consider them or do not consider allocating these resources as expenses, if not it is an investment, fortunately we have healthy public finances,” held.

This is the first support plan and the first official damage estimate offered by the Government of Mexico after Otis, which hit the southern coast of Guerrero last Wednesday as a category 5 after a record intensification.