| NR-326/98 | ||
|
DIRECT INQUIRIES TO:
|
|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
|
December 16, 1998 |
|
IDB APPROVES $70.4 MILLION FOR MODEL SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM FOR DARIEN REGION OF PANAMA Pioneering effort to promote participation of residents in resource protection |
|
The Inter-American Development Bank today announced the approval of a $70.4 million loan to Panama to support a pioneering program for the sustainable social and economic development of the Darien region and to help protect its natural resources. The program, to be carried out by the Program Coordination Unit of the Ministry of Planning and Economic Policy, * is expected to be a model for future projects in areas with fragile ecosystems and diverse ethnic populations, including indigenous groups. A central feature of the project is consultation mechanisms to bring about participation of affected populations in the project as well as advice from environmentalists, government agencies, churches, and other civil society organizations. The goals of the program are as follows: - Establish an effective land use management plan in keeping with the area's natural resource features. - Reverse the process of deforestation and conflicts over land use and stabilize the agricultural frontier. - Enhance the capacity of institutions responsible for resource management. - Strengthen managerial and supervisory capacities at the regional, municipal, and indigenous community levels. - Promote changes in the existing models of production and natural resource exploitation so as to ensure their sustainability, improve their efficiency and encourage diversification of the local economy. - Rehabilitate the transportation system to enhance internal mobility for passengers and freight and improve access to the region in a manner consistent with the land use management plan. - Coordinate program activities with those other institutions and donors. The province of Darien is Panama's largest and richest in natural resources, representing 22 percent of the national territory and bordering on Colombia in the east. It also has the poorest inhabitants in the country, ethnic diversity, fragile ecosystems, inadequate infrastructure, and weak community organizations – problems that the project seeks to address. The total cost of the program is $88 million. The IDB loan is for a 20-year term, with a six-year grace period, at a variable interest rate, now 6.98 percent. Local counterpart funds total $17.6 million. |
|
*Ministerio de Planificación y Política Económica Tel: (507) 269-4133; fax (507) 254-7755 |
HOME
ABOUT THE IDB | BUSINESS OPPORTUNITIES | DEPARTMENTS | POLICIES
PRESS & PUBLICATIONS | PRIVATE SECTOR | PROJECTS | RESEARCH & DATA