Brazil gets $24.5 million IDB loan for sanitation and water improvements in the Amazon

Dec 12, 2012

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved a loan for $24.5 million for the municipality of Maués in the Brazilian Amazon to carry out urban and environmental improvements and basic sanitation.

The government of the state of Amazonas is providing an additional $10.5 to the project, known as Maués Integrated Sanitation Program (Prosaimaués), for a total of $35 million. The project will serve as a pilot for initiatives to improve infrastructure in municipalities in the state’s interior.

As with other municipalities in the interior of Amazonas, Maués is a large area with difficult access to the state capital of Manaus. The population is divided between urban and rural communities, and includes indigenous communities of the Sateré- Mawé people. The municipality’s rapid population increase―its urban population grew by140 percent between 1980 and 2010―was not accompanied by sufficient investment in infrastructure, which contributed to the present shortcomings.

“Prosaimaués focuses on cleaning up urban lagoons, expanding and improving sanitation services in urban areas, and strengthening management in the municipality and other entities involved in the process,” said Yvon Mellinger, project team leader. Another program objective is to create potable water systems and sanitary services for the municipality’s indigenous areas.

The program will include financing for drainage and urbanization works for the Maresia, Prata, and Donga lagoons that consist of 33,000 meters of sanitary lines and drainage networks, 14 hectares of green areas, 3.4 km of bicycle lanes, and 900 square meters of multiuse area for fairs and expositions. An estimated 308 families presently living around the lagoons will be relocated.

Prosaimaués will also receive support from the IDB’s Multilateral Investment Fund aimed at stimulating the local economy.

The IDB loan has a 25 years term, a grace period of five-and-a-half years, and an interest rate based on the Libor.

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