President Mujica and VP Astori want to encourage more foreign developers to launch projects in Uruguay.

After the U.S.’s $787 billion Grow Government package which Harvard essentially labeled a failure, it’s refreshing to hear about a stimulus package that could actually create jobs, promote development and provide some much needed housing.

Montevideo’s LR21 reports today on the Uruguay government’s decision to promote a series of fiscal stimulus measures to incentivize private investment in the construction of new homes and condominiums. The President and Vice President of the Republic, Jose Mujica y Danilo Astori, made the announcement yesterday at a luncheon hosted by the APPCU, the Association of Private Developers in Uruguay.

While some members of the U.S. Congress seem completely out of touch with the private sector, President Mujica said he values interaction with groups like APPCU to better understand the needs and challenges facing leaders in the country’s most important job creating sectors. Vice President Astori also acknowledged the critical role national and foreign developers will play in realizing one of the priorities of the Mujica administration, “promoting tourism-related real estate development which provides tremendous revenue and job creation for Uruguay.”

And while national builders still account for the bulk of new construction, Astori officially rolled out the light blue carpet for foreign developers. “These incentives are as much for national investors as they are for foreign groups who can collaborate with the public sector in developing new projects,” Astori said adding, “National investors dominate housing construction, while in the real estate tourism sector, we are hoping for more foreign investment.” (Full Story in Spanish)