Mission Statement
The Bank's leadership as the region's main multilateral development institution rests upon the quality of its operations. The Sustainable Development Department (SDS) contributes to the fulfillment of the strategic goals of the IDB by providing advisory support to Bank project teams and quality review of projects, including a review of their environmental and social impact. Moreover, keeping the Bank at the forefront of economic and social development in the region requires preparing sector strategies, policies and operational guidelines, to provide guidance in the design of loans and the monitoring and evaluation of the Bank's portfolio. In addition, SDS is the focus for the creation and dissemination of knowledge on lessons learned, best practices and analytical research on operations, and the design of pilot programs in innovative areas that can be mainstreamed into Bank lending.
The Department promotes special events such as seminars, workshops, conferences and training events, and publishes technical papers, best practices reports, and strategy and policy papers as well as books and other special reports. Information is also available in videos and other media. These activities are vital to ensuring that the experiences gained and the lessons learned can be effectively applied to the design of future projects. SDS also develops and maintains contacts with partners (such as other multilateral and bilateral donors, non-governmental organizations and various stakeholders), which are instrumental in establishing a regional consensus on issues of strategic importance, as well as leveraging the impact of Bank financing.
SDS consists of six divisions and five units (organized into three subdepartments) that are able to provide the Bank with technical expertise in most areas of interest. The three subdepartments are: Social Development and Public Governance; Private Enterprise and Financial Markets; and Education, Science and Technology.
The Social Development and Public Governance Subdepartment covers issues such as social programs, gender equality, indigenous peoples, community development, social inclusion, rural development, state reform, governance, and civil society. The Private Enterprise and Financial Markets Subdepartment is responsible for topics such as infrastructure, financial reform and markets, micro, small and medium enterprises, and the environment. The Education, Science and Technology Subdepartment deals with education, information and communication technology, and science and technology issues. SDS also includes the Poverty and Inequality Unit.
All these areas interact and contribute to the Bank's overarching objectives for reducing poverty and promoting social equity, and for promoting sustainable economic growth.
- The Poverty and Inequality Unit provides technical and strategic leadership on poverty-related issues, as well as support and review of poverty reduction in country strategies, sector work, and lending operations.
- The Inter-American Initiative on Social Capital, Ethics and Development seeks to mainstream the concepts of development ethics and social capital into IDB operations, country programming dialogues and strategies and to contribute to strengthen a culture of ethics and to mobilize social capital in the region.
Social Development and Public Governance Subdepartment
- The Social Development Division addresses issues such as children and youth, social services, urban development, violence prevention, labor markets, and health.
- The Gender Equality in Development Unit promotes the full and active participation of women in Bank-funded programs, providing quality review of projects and technical assistance to project teams, in addition to undertaking outreach activities.
- The Indigenous Peoples and Community Development Unit is responsible for ensuring the sociocultural soundness of Bank operations in the areas of indigenous peoples, involuntary resettlement, and community consultation and participation. The Unit also promotes development with identity.
- The Rural Development Unit provides technical assistance and support for the development of sustainable agriculture and rural poverty reduction programs.
- The State, Governance and Civil Society Division provides conceptual and technical support in the identification and design of operations for the modernization of the State, the promotion and consolidation of the rule of law, and strengthening civil society.
Private Enterprise and Financial Markets Subdepartment
- The Environment Division furthers the goal of sustainable development by enhancing the environmental quality of operations. It ensures that projects fulfill IDB environmental objectives and requirements by drawing upon lessons from other operations, direct experience, and state-of-the-art research and analysis.
- The Infrastructure and Financial Markets Division is concerned with infrastructure investment and management, financial and capital markets development, and the development of private enterprises.
- The Micro, Small and Medium Enterprise Division is responsible for promoting the creation of the necessary conditions for the development of the micro, small, and medium enterprise sector in the region and carries out operations in this area.
Education, Science and Technology Subdepartment
- The Information and Communication Technology for Development Division seeks to strengthen the Bank's efforts to support the development of information and communication technology in the region by incorporating IT components in sector projects (such as health, education, and modernization of the State) and projects to support small and medium enterprise (SME), as well as by fine-tuning and implementing the Bank's strategy on information and communication technology for development.
- The Education Unit works on the conception and design of new education, science and technology projects; develops policies and strategies for these areas, and monitors the Bank's portfolio of education, science and technology projects.
