Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) President Luis Alberto Moreno signed agreements this afternoon for IDB Group financing for Paraguayan enterprises.
Through the agreements, the Bank will support a financial inclusion program, an export model for a Paraguayan organic sugar cooperative, and a regional initiative for economic and social inclusion of waste collectors.
The ceremony was held at the Convention Center of the South American Football Confederation (CONMEBOL) as part of the VIII Inter-American Conference on Corporate Social Responsibility (CSRAméricas 2011).
President Moreno noted that the agreements express a philosophy of "creation of joint value” that the Bank promotes in all of its operations. He congratulated the participating entrepreneurs and firms for their creativity and social sensitivity, as well as the IDB specialists who work with the private sector to structure projects.
He noted that the major challenge facing Latin America and the Caribbean is to reduce social gaps through the coordinated effort of the whole society at the initiative of “those who have more.” Projects and programs such as those that were signed this afternoon, he said, “are helping to make it possible for the larger population to benefit from opportunities created by the recent period of economic growth, which is being called ‘the decade of Latin America.’"
The first agreement, signed with TIGO Paraguay, will finance the development of a program to provide financial services through cell phones to unbanked persons. Its purpose is to facilitate loan repayments, payment of basic services, and money transfers to unbanked populations in rural areas of Paraguay. The project’s total cost of $1,278,916 will be financed with the help of $494,215 from the Multilateral Investment Fund and counterpart financing from the firm Móvil Cash Paraguay S.A.
This project was selected through a competitive process under the Technology Programs for Financial Inclusion (RG-M1155), which received nearly 200 entries from throughout Latin America, including nine from Paraguay. The project TIGO Móvil Cash Paraguay S.A.was one of three chosen from a shortlist of 20 proposals. The counterpart financing agreement was signed by Rafael Cabral, the company’s general manager.
The second agreement will support an export model for a Paraguayan organic sugar cooperative with resources from the Social Entrepreneurship Program of the Multilateral Investment Fund. The total cost of the project is $6,500,000, of which US$1 million will be financed with a loan to the Manduvira Agroindustrial Production Cooperative Ltd. The project will result in the construction of a plant with a capacity to produce 18,000 tons of sugar annually. In addition, a technical cooperation grant for $250,000 will fund training for small farmers and technical assistance during the plant’s construction. The counterpart financing agreement was signed by Luis Dario Ruiz Diaz, president of the cooperative, Amalia Martinez Leiva, and Andrés González Aguilera, general manager.
The third agreement is part of the Regional Initiative for Economic and Social Inclusion of Recyclers, which aims to improve access of these groups to markets for recycled materials in Latin America and the Caribbean. The project aims to increase coordination at the national and regional level among national/local, business, and social organizations to promote greater inclusion of waste collectors in the value chain.
The project will benefit an estimated 5,000 persons directly and some 10,000 additional persons indirectly. Direct and indirect beneficiaries will also include consumer product companies, municipal and national governments, and intermediary organizations (NGOs and foundations) in Latin America and the Caribbean. The total cost of the project is $8,400,000, of which MIF will finance $4 million and the IDB’s AquaFund (INE/WSA) will provide $1 million. Cofinancing of US$1.4 million will be contributed by the Fundación Avina Avina along with $2 million from The Coca Cola Company. The counterpart financing agreement was signed by Valdemar de Oliveira Neto.