Financial Operations: Technical Cooperation

During calendar year 2000, three technical cooperation initiatives of the Division were approved by the Bank.

First, the Regional Technical Cooperation "Pilot Program for the Diffusion of Information Technologies in Social Programs" (ATN/SF-7119-RG) approved in August, 2000. This operation is currently under execution and contemplates a cofinancing/parallel financing scheme comprised of: (a) US$500,000 of the Bank from the Fund for Special Operations (FSO); and (b) US$1,500,000 for the Information Society Technologies Program (IST) of the European Commission. The Program is targeted at encouraging the use and application of information and communication technologies in social development projects--within priority sectors consistent with the Bank's regional technical cooperation strategy--, to the extent that such technologies may contribute to greater efficiency in the projects' attainment of their poverty reduction and social equity goals.

For further information about the Program, visit the Division's Web Site under "New": Pilot Program for the Diffusion of Information Technologies in Social Programs and IST's Web Site

Second, the Technical Cooperation "Information Technology Expert" (ATN/FF-7223-RG) approved in November, 20001. The operation is under execution and is financed entirely by the Government of Finland through its Finnish Trust Fund for Individual Consultants with a total cost of US$103,500 for the first year, renewable for up to two years. It is targeted at strengthening the technical support of the Division to the Bank's borrowing member countries within the framework of the information and communication technologies for the social and economic development of the Latin American and Caribbean Region. The Technical Cooperation

Third, the Technical Cooperation "Feasibility Study to Replicate the Japanese Model of Cyber-Cities in the Latin America and Caribbean Region--ATN/JF-6528-RG(32)--for a total amount of US$150,000 financed entirely by the Japanese Trust Fund. This represents the first step towards the establishment of "creative communities" in the Region. The Program seeks to strengthen the local communities' capacity to formulate and implement information and communication technologies within the framework of the new economy, human capital development, and digital democracy. For further and more detailed information, visit the Division's Web Site.

Fourth, the design of an "Information Technology for Social Purposes Fund" (Tech Fund), to be financed with resources from different donors of the Bank (multi-donor funding), and whose objective is to finance a series of pre-investment activities including, among others, the elaboration of situational, supply and demand studies, and the undertaking of project preparation activities in the area of application of information and communication technologies to social development. The initiative has been favorably welcomed by the Bank's bilateral donors and will provide the inputs necessary to effectively design future investment/loan and technical cooperation activities in the area of information technology for social development by the Bank. Parallel financing is currently being sought to undertake seminars and workshops to disseminate the Program once project execution begins.

These cooperation and cofinancing programs/technical cooperations seek direct links to the Bank's existing financing mechanisms including: (a) the technical cooperation program; (b) the regional technical cooperation program; and (c) the lending program (Fund for Special Operations--FSO--and ordinary capital), including the Cofinancing Department programs. In particular, they seek to provide the necessary inputs and information for the Bank and its member nations to evaluate, design and implement social and economic development projects of a wider scope involving information technologies, which can be effectively replicated throughout the Region.