Project ID: 1199
Executive Board Document: EB-2001-74-R-23-Rev-1

Sustainable Rural Development Project for the Ngobe-Bugle Territory and Adjoining Districts

The proposed project will address the needs of 30 000 rural poor indigenous Ngbe-Bugl 75% and non-indigenous poor 25% located in the western provinces of Panama. One project innovation is to promote the integration of indigenous and non-indigenous beneficiaries, thus increasing the potential for an integrated local economic development process and for improved income opportunities for beneficiaries. The project will support and invest in human and social capital: strengthening beneficiary educational and organizational capacity and establishing a horizontal working-relations scheme with the beneficiary population. The approach will be devoid of any trace of paternalism and will promote the evolution of the Ngbe-Bugl population from clients to actors and partners in the rural development of their comarca. This process should strengthen the self-esteem of indigenous populations, stimulate the countrys respect for their ancestral cultural heritage and promote the empowerment of traditional organizations. The project will promote sustainable income-generating activities in a context of rational use of natural resources. It will support rural communities in waste management and in natural-resource and land-use conflict resolution. Mechanisms will be established for systematic policy dialogue and the exchange of rural development and poverty-alleviation methodologies for indigenous populations with the Government, other donors and other IFAD-financed projects.

Poverty and extreme poverty affect 65 and 39%, respectively, of the rural population of Panama. To the already high incidence of rural poverty, the indigenous factor adds a tremendous further impact on income and living conditions: 95.4% of indigenous populations live under the poverty line (USD 905 per capita/year) and 86.6% live under the extreme poverty line (USD 519 per capita/year). Thus the indigenous ethnic communities of Panama are primary IFAD target groups, while the non-indigenous rural poor constitute the secondary target group.

The project will be demand-driven. Project clients will design their own community development plans, a training and scholarship programme, and activities suitable for financing and implementation under the project. Each community will also monitor its own plan, and the information will be shared with the project. Four members of the traditional Ngbe-Bugl leadership, from three provincial congresses and the General Comarcal Indigenous Congress, will represent project clients on the project steering committee.

Loan amount:

SDR 19.4 million (equivalent to approximately USD 25.0 million) on ordinary terms

Total project costs are estimated at USD 33.0 million

Cooperating Institution:

Andean Development Corporation (CAF)

Project ID: 1049
Executive Board Document:

Sustainable Rural Development Project in the Provinces of Cocl , Coln and Panama

This six-year project will contribute to the reduction of rural poverty by increasing rural household incomes on the basis of enhanced production and productivity of small farmers and support for the creation of rural microenterprises. Project components are:

- production and community support services, including strengthening of small farmers' organizations, land titling, agricultural extension and training, and marketing and promotion of rural microenterprises;

- natural resource conservation;

- financing of productive activities;

- rural infrastructure and community investments; and

- project direction, monitoring and evaluation.

The project will be located in the central part of the country on the western coast of the Panama Canal; the total rural population is approximately 140 000 people or 28 000 families. The project will directly benefit 7 500 poor rural households (of which 20% are headed by women) whose income derives mainly from agriculture. Approximately 42% of the beneficiaries will be marginal producers with farms under 5 ha in size, 41% will be subsistence producers with farms 5-10 ha in size, and 17% will be market-oriented small producers who usually own farms 10-50 ha in size and have small herds of cattle.

Loan amount:

SDR 8.9 million (approximately USD 12.2 million) on ordinary terms.

Total project costs are estimated at USD 17.4 million, of which USD 4.3 million will be provided by the borrower and USD 800 000 by the beneficiaries.

Cooperating institution:

Andean Development Corporation.