The Diplomat
The Council of Ministers yesterday authorized the granting of two credits of almost 30 million euros, from the Fund for the Promotion of Development (FONPRODE), to help rural families and households in the Dominican Republic and Niger.
On the one hand, the Government authorized a loan to the Dominican Republic for a maximum amount of US$20,000,000 (17.7 million euros) to help reduce monetary poverty and the vulnerability of rural families (some 160,000 people), due to their low productive inclusion and their frequent exposure to economic and climatic shocks.
Assistance to these families will be channeled through the Productive and Resilient Inclusion of Rural Families Project – PRORURAL Inclusive, a government program co-financed by the UN’s International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), which will provide US$11.88 million (10.4 million euros), and by FONPRODE. The rest of the estimated financing will be provided by the Dominican Government, local financial institutions and the beneficiaries themselves.
The Dominican Republic is among the Middle Income Partnership Countries of the Spanish Cooperation policy, according to the V Master Plan 2018-2021. The operation is aligned with the 2019-2022 Country Partnership Framework between Spain-Dominican Republic and with the targets of the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) of the 2030 Agenda.
On the other hand, the Council of Ministers authorized the granting of a credit of ten million euros to the Republic of Niger, under FONPRODE. The overall objective of this credit is to contribute to the financing of the Project to strengthen the resilience of rural communities to food and nutrition insecurity in Niger (PRECIS), targeting more than 200,000 rural households affected by climate shocks and the degradation of natural resources. The project will be co-financed by IFAD, FONPRODE, the African Development Bank, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) Fund for International Development and the Green Climate Fund, among other international entities, in addition to the State of Niger itself.
Niger is among the Least Developed Partnership Countries of the Spanish Cooperation policy, according to the V Master Plan 2018-2021 and the Country Partnership Framework with Niger from 2014 to 2016, currently in force. The operation is also in line with the SDGs of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, particularly those related to combating malnutrition and increasing agricultural productivity and the income of smallholder farmers.
The Council of Ministers also authorized the granting of a loan of fifteen million dollars (13.2 million euros) to Banco Azul de El Salvador S.A., under the Fund for the Promotion of Development. Banco Azul’s social objective is to contribute to the country’s development through the provision of financial services and personalized attention, and the purpose of this loan is to contribute to increasing the credit portfolio aimed at small and medium-size companies in all of El Salvador’s productive sectors, as well as to finance clean energy projects.
The government also authorized yesterday the granting of a loan for a maximum amount of US$3,000,000 (2.6 million euros) to Sociedad para la Inclusión de la microempresa en Centroamérica y El Caribe, S.A. (SICSA), under the Development Promotion Fund.
