Panama will receive a US$30 million loan from the Inter-American Development Bank to improve housing conditions with a comprehensive neighborhood upgrading, housing and urban renewal program.
The program will promote improve living conditions and reduce poverty by giving low-income groups greater access to housing and basic urban services. This operation will support neighborhood improvements in four settlements in Panama City with a combined population of 1,600 families and low-cost housing for 1,900 families in the periurban areas of the country’s largest cities.
The program will also support the revitalization of Panama City’s historic district, called the Casco Antiguo, by restoring housing --typically wood-framed historic buildings—preserving the original architecture of the area. The project intends to retain a segment of the district’s longtime low-income residents to keep the area’s diversity and traditions. It will also support the instituonal structure for urban renewal activities now under way.
The Ministry of Housing’s Housing and Urban Development Policy Unit will be strengthened to carry out the program. The loan is granted for a 25-year term, with a four-year grace period, at a variable interest rate. Local counterpart funds will total US$1.5 million.