Dear members,

First of all, I hope everyone is well and in good health. It is in moments like the one we are experiencing that we especially appreciate the blessing of being IDB retirees, with our pensions and a solid health insurance program. But those benefits cannot and should not insulate us from the pain of people throughout the world who are suffering the consequences of the coronavirus crisis – having lost their jobs, their income, and in some cases, sadly, even their lives.

That is why the Board of Directors approved last week a special program to deal with this emergency, through which the Association’s Chapters can request up to $ 3,000 each to support institutions dedicated to helping alleviate this crisis. They are small grains of sand that we hope will become seeds of hope.

As you know, even though the Bank had to close its doors, the staff continues to operate from their homes, and that includes members of the HRD/COB Division who manage the administration of our health insurance program and our taxes, and those of SRP our pensions. The Association continues to operate in the same way, by phone, email, the website, Skype, Zoom, Facebook, as well as through social networks. We continue to serve as a channel between our partners and Bank staff, to monitor that our benefits are safe and are provided in a timely and efficient manner. For example, it is worth noting that the health insurance program will cover 100% of the cost of tests for Covid-19, and the VHEALTH program has been implemented whereby program members can use telemedicine services.

Also, as you are aware, the federal government of the United States has postponed for three months the presentation of our tax returns for 2019 and the payment of the first installment of the estimated taxes of 2020. Now, in view of the fact that we receive this benefit and the Bank maintains the date of June 26 for the presentation of the documentation that is submitted to Deloitte, we recommend that, notwithstanding the aforementioned extensions, you submit your tax returns as soon as possible, in order to facilitate the timely review and processing of the same.

I want to remind you, as we announced on March 27, that we are going to hold our Annual Assembly on April 23 in virtual form by means of four videos, one by Juan Manuel Fariña, Coordinator of the Tally Committee, reporting on the results of the elections , which ended on April 11, one from Claudia Bock, Vice President of Finance and Administration, one from President Moreno and one from me.

In closing, dear members, I would like to emphasize, once again, that key element of our mission which is to stay united, an especially relevant objective under the current circumstances. Please use all means at your disposal to make contacts with family and friends, especially those who may be quarantined alone.

We will “see” each other next Thursday.

David