New fund established to improve water and sanitation in Latin America

Citation

(2009), "New fund established to improve water and sanitation in Latin America", Management of Environmental Quality, Vol. 20 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/meq.2009.08320bab.001

New fund established to improve water and sanitation in Latin America

Article Type: News From: Management of Environmental Quality: An International Journal, Volume 20, Issue 2

The government of Spain and the Inter-American Development Bank signed an agreement to cooperate in the execution of the Fund for Cooperation for Water and Sanitation, a Spanish initiative that is expected to provide up to US$1.5 billion in grants to countries in Latin America and the Caribbean over the next four years. Under the agreement, Spain will set priorities and evaluate the impact of the projects financed by the Fund, while the IDB will identify and prepare specific investments and oversee their implementation and evaluation, in coordination with the recipient governments. The agreement was announced during the 18th Ibero-American Summit being held in San Salvador.

The memorandum of understanding to establish the Spanish Fund for Water and Sanitation was signed by IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno, Soraya Rodríguez, Secretary of State for International Cooperation and President of the Spanish Agency for International Development (known by the Spanish acronym AECID), and David Vegara, Secretary of State for Economic Affairs of Spain. Spain is providing €300 million in 2008 as its initial contribution to the new fund. The grants will be available to finance projects in water supply, sewerage, wastewater treatment, urban storm drainage, water resource management, adaption to climate change, efficiency and operations management.