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Argentina
A $75 million loan from the IDB's ordinary capital and a $225 million syndicated loan to Aguas Argentinas S.A. to help finance the 1998-2001 investment program of the sole provider of potable water and sewerage services for the city of Buenos Aires and 13 surrounding municipalities.

A $60 million IIC line of credit to Banco de Galicia y Buenos Aires S.A. (composed of a $10 million IIC loan and a $50 million syndicated loan) to provide small and medium-sized enterprises in the industrial and agribusiness sectors with long-term financing.

A $7.5 million IDB loan designed to advance social, economic, and political equity for women.

A $6.64 million IIC loan to Desler S.A., to help expand capacity and broaden the array of services that the private firm can provide to industrial waste generators.

A $1.9 million MIF grant to strengthen provincial regulatory agencies and support privatization in the water supply and sanitation sector.

Bahamas
A $23.5 million IDB loan to improve solid waste management, strengthen environmental protection, and enhance health standards.

Bolivia
A $45 million soft loan from the Fund for Special Operations to help reduce the spread of Chagas disease and reform the health sector (see New Projects).

A $10 million IIC line of credit to Banco Mercantil, S.A., to finance home mortgages and lay the groundwork for mortgage securitization.

A $4.9 million MIF equity investment in Bolivia Capital Activo, which will provide equity and quasi-equity investments for small businesses.

A $2,100,000 MIF grant, to be administered by Fundación Bolinvest, to make small industrial enterprises more competitive.

A $1.5 million MIF grant to support the consolidation and development of the securities market.

A $1.1 million MIF grant to support the implementation of pension reforms.

Brazil
A $10 million IDB grant in national currency to support the Capacitação Solidária program, which provides vocational as well as life skills training for poor urban youth.

A $1.6 million MIF grant to strengthen alternative commercial dispute resolution methods.

A $834,000 MIF grant to strengthen consumer protection in the public utilities sector.

Chile
A $650,000 MIF grant to expand and improve commercial arbitration and mediation services.

Colombia
A $550 million emergency loan from ordinary capital, the largest ever by the IDB to Colombia, to support public sector reform.

An $87 million IDB loan to assist the government in improving the allocation of public resources for agricultural research and to ensure that research focuses on high-priority national and regional programs.

A $20 million IDB loan--the first approved under an accelerated procedure designed specifically to counteract natural disasters--to aid recovery and reconstruction following the earthquake in January (see "Aid on the fast track" on this issue).

A $1.4 million MIF grant to strengthen the credit union system.

A $300,000 IDB loan and $250,000 IDB grant from the Fund for Special Operations for the Corporación Minuto de Dios to improve social and economic conditions for microenterprise in the Department of Chocó.

Ecuador
A $1 million grant from the Japan Special Fund to strengthen, expand, and institutionalize the Integrated System of Social Indicators.

A $5 million IIC loan to Compañía de Titularización Hipotecaria to help create a second tier financial institution to develop products for the mortgage finance sector and to develop the local capital markets.

Honduras
A $25.8 million concessional loan from the Fund for Special Operations to help repair and rebuild infrastructure that was damaged by Hurricane Mitch.

A $4 million senior IIC loan and a $3 million subordinated loan to Banco Financiera Comercial Hondureña, S.A., to provide small and medium-sized enterprises with medium- and long-term financing.

Paraguay
A $915,000 MIF grant to support the rapid development of the private sector in the insurance market.

Peru
A $10 million IIC loan to Banco del Nuevo Mundo S.A.E.M.A. The funding will be directed to small and medium-sized Peruvian enterprises engaged in the industrial, manufacturing, fishing, mining, construction, chemical, energy, tourism and agribusiness sectors.

A $1 million MIF grant to support the development of skill standards and regional training programs for the tourism industry.

Venezuela
A $1.5 million MIF grant to support a worker retraining program for the region of Guayana.

Regional
A $1,337,000 MIF grant to Caribbean Action for Sustainable Tourism to improve the quality and competitiveness of the tourism industry.

A $1,025,000 MIF technical cooperation grant to strengthen village banking institutions for microenterprise.

A $600,000 MIF grant to promote the export competitiveness of handicraft producers' organizations in Central America, Mexico, and the Caribbean.