CI, IDB sign deal for US$1.6M low-carbon project in Rupununi

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and Conservation International Guyana (CI) on Tuesday signed an agreement to start a US$ 1.6 million project, to establish and promote micro enterprise development in the Rupununi. IDB Country representative to Guyana Sophie Makonnen said it is the largest Multilateral Investment Fund (MIF) financed project in Guyana to date.

The project will test models for the implementation of Guyana’s Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) by contributing to the economic development of the Rupununi region while preserving ecosystems.
More importantly, she said, the joint partnership project will also support, strengthen, and create environmentally and socially sustainable, local-level, business-led initiatives in the Rupununi. The IDB official noted that 70 per cent of the project is being funded by the IDB, through MIF, and the other 30 per cent by CI Guyana.
Makonnen stated that this is not the first project funded by the IDB that supports economic development in Guyana. The most recent IDB-funded project focused on institutional strengthening of the Office of Climate Change and the Guyana Forestry Commission.
Another project is being prepared by the IDB to be funded through the Guyana REDD+ Investment Fund (GRIF). This will focus on creating alternative livelihoods for vulnerable groups, though the creation of micro and small enterprises.
The three-year initiative launched to support community-based, low-carbon economic development in the Rupununi will be built on community-based nature-tourism and agriculture, which the local and indigenous communities have identified as being central for sustainable development in the Rupununi.
The IDB official said businesses will be grouped together to help beneficiary community- based enterprises access markets and increase bargaining power.
Through the project, communities and local businesses will benefit from technical and strategic advice, plus financing for the preparation and implementation of business plans. The lessons learnt from the project will be documented and shared with national and international audiences through the IDB knowledge network.
Guyana’s LCDS seeks to promote low-carbon economic development using revenues generated through the maintenance of the climate and biodiversity assets found in the country’s intact ecosystems. The project will build support for current initiatives already being implemented by the communities, the Guyana government and other partners, as it relates to the LCDS. The project will be formally launched at a public event on October 13, in Lethem, Rupununi where it is anticipated that several top government and private sector officials will be present.
The IDB is currently the largest source of development financing for Latin America and the Caribbean.
Together, Guyana and the IDB collaborated with others to improve childhood nutrition, reform education, and upgrade the road network for facilitating private sector development.
The bank aims to support government’s vision for accelerating economic growth through economic diversification and targeted social development.