News Releases

Aug 8, 2008

Brazil’s Amazonas gets IDB support to improve living conditions in Igarapés

IDB loan will directly benefit more than 15,500 families in Manaus

Brazil’s Amazonas state will obtain a US$154 million loan from the Inter-American Development Bank to finance the construction of drainage, sewage, solid waste collection and disposal systems. The project will benefit people living in areas prone to flooding and waterborne disease in its capital, Manaus.

The project will finance works in the Igarapés of Educandos/Quarenta and São Raimundo watersheds, home to more than 600,000 people. The IDB loan will finance urban renewal and reorganization, including the construction of drainage, flood control structures and homes. It will also finance the execution of socio-cultural activities needed to resettle the families living in risky areas. Approximately 15,500 people will be free from the frequent flood impacts after the program’s completion.

By controlling the direct discharge of sewage and solid waste to the Igarapés, the program will also contribute to the improvement of the Igarapés’ water quality. The aim is to reduce the incidence of severe diarrhea by more than half, and the level of biodegradable organic matter (BOD5) from 240 mg/l to approximately 20 mg/l. Another outcome is the reduction in the number of squatter settlements by 5 percent in Manaus.

The IDB has focused its efforts in improving living conditions of low-income families in fast-growing Brazilian cities. Like other Brazilian metropolitan areas, Manaus has expanded rapidly, with the population growing more than five-fold in the past three decades to approximately 1.7 million. Many migrants occupy areas on the banks of streams, known as igarapés, which are affected by the periodic floods that occur during the January-June rainy season.

The IDB loan, which will mature in 25 years with a 5-year grace period, will finance 70 percent of the total cost of the project. The loan will be denominated in U.S. dollars and will charge the London Interbank Offered Rate (Libor).

The facility will complement another loan from the Bank granted to the state in 2006 to begin sanitation and other water works in Educandos/Quarenta watershed, which is located in the heart of the city of Manaus.

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