The Inter-American Development Bank today announced the approval of three loans totaling $56 million for Paraguay to support modernization of the state and improvements in basic education, agriculture.
Basic education
An IDB loan of $40 million will support a program to improve quality and equity in basic education through investments in teacher training, infrastructure, classroom materials and equipment, and provide resources for pioneering bilingual instruction that will benefit speakers of Guaraní.
Among the components of the program is financing for 600 educational improvement projects among the 1,200 largest schools, which will promote greater autonomy in resource management and the development of successful new approaches to education.
An integrated program to improve student learning, teacher training, educational supplies and administration will be applied in grades one through six to 150 disadvantaged schools that account for 10 percent of all urban schools in the country.
A bilingual teaching program to enhance student learning in the first six years of school will be carried out in 1,000 rural schools, benefiting 25 percent of the student population, and financing will be provided for 25 improvement projects prepared by government teacher training institutes.
Investments will be made in classroom construction and repair for comprehensive schools for grades seven, eight and nine. Resources will also support the Ministry of Education in regulation, policy formulation, monitoring, evaluation, and public information to consolidate the educational reform of 1992.
In addition, the program will promote parental involvement in school affairs by providing resources to Asociaciones de Cooperación Escolar.
The total cost of the program, to be carried out by the Ministry of Education and Culture,* is $44 million. The IDB loan is for a 25-year term, with a five-year grace period, at the currency pool variable interest rate, now 6.38 percent. Local counterpart funds total $4 million.
Assistance to small farmers
A $10 million IDB loan will provide resources for a program to raise the income of small farmers by the usage of new technologies for the production of fruits and vegetables and by new marketing approaches.
The program is designed to increase output and exports and strengthen commercial corporations that provide marketing services, as well as technical assistance to small producers participating in the agrifood chain. The program will also provide training to government agencies involved in project execution.
Grant financing assistance will be made available to farmers investing in half shade and irrigation facilities and in the collective irrigation production infrastructure for groups of at least five small farmers.
The total cost of the program is $12.5 million. Local counterpart funds total $2.5 million.
The IDB loan is for a 25-year term, with a five-year grace period, at the variable pooled currency annual interest rate, now 6.38 percent.
The program will be carried out by the Ministry of Agriculture.**
Modernization of the state
A $6 million IDB loan will assist the government in modernizing state agencies responsible for fiscal management.
The program will improve the framework of rules and regulations that govern operations of the Subsecretariat of State for Financial Management (SSEAF), the Subsecretariat of State for Taxation (SSET), and the National Customs Office (DGA), and it will help these agencies achieve a better organizational structure, adopt the best internal processes and procedures, set up management control systems, and train staff.
The program will also increase the coverage and productivity of the inspections of the SSET and DGA, broaden the active taxpayer base, and integrate the taxation and customs administration information systems.
Among the benefits of the program will be greater transparency in government operations and an increase in tax collections.
The total cost of the program is $8.7 million. The IDB loan is for a 20-year term, with a three-year grace period, at the currency pool variable interest rate, now 6.38 percent.
Local counterpart funds total $2.7 million.
The Ministry of Finance*** will carry out the program, acting through the SSEAF, the SSET, and the DGA.