WILLEMSTAD – The Dutch House of Representatives has rejected a proposal to establish a so-called Kingdom Fund that would provide interest-free loans to Curaçao, Aruba, and Sint Maarten. The plan, submitted by the GroenLinks–PvdA parliamentary group, aimed to help the Caribbean countries within the Kingdom finance major investments and strengthen their resilience to crises such as pandemics and natural disasters.
Demissionary State Secretary for Kingdom Relations Eddie van Marum (BBB) advised against the proposal, arguing that additional support in the form of interest-free loans is neither necessary nor financially desirable. According to Van Marum, the Caribbean countries already have access to borrowing from the Netherlands under favorable conditions. Fully interest-free loans, he said, would effectively amount to grants, for which there is currently no budgetary room.
Despite backing from GroenLinks–PvdA, the Christian Union, SP, Party for the Animals, 50Plus, and Volt, a majority in the House voted against the motion. As a result, there will be no separate Kingdom fund offering interest-free loans in the foreseeable future.
The decision means that Curaçao, Aruba, and Sint Maarten will continue to rely on existing financial arrangements within the Kingdom for large-scale investments and crisis response, rather than a new dedicated funding mechanism.