Funds will support better drainage and land use planning in the Macambira and Anicuns River watersheds

Washington, United States of America – The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) 2008-05-01 announced the approval of a US$56.7 million loan to the Municipality of Goiânia for an urban environmental program in the Macambira and Anicuns River watersheds. The program will help mitigate the impact of haphazard settlement along riverbanks and promote citizen participation in sustainable development of the city of Goiânia, located in west-central Brazil.

Since 1960, the population of Goiânia has grown from 150,000 residents to more than one million. Rapid urbanization occurred without the necessary infrastructure or planning, resulting in environmental degradation such as flooding, soil erosion and water pollution, particularly in the Macambira and Anicuns River watersheds.

To address these problems, the program will improve environmental conditions in the area through rehabilitation and installation of drainage systems, land-use planning and environmental protection along riverbanks. Living conditions for project area residents will also be improved through urban planning, urban infrastructure, land titling, housing and recreation areas. Municipal institutions will be strengthened to help ensure project sustainability.

“The program will help municipal authorities to get ahead of the environmental problems caused by sprawl around a changing city while improving the quality of life of at-risk settlements along the banks of its rivers,” said IDB project team leader Coral Fernández Illescas. “The program will help reduce damage to the public and private infrastructure caused by flooding, and it will finance the improvement of social infrastructure and the construction of recreational areas.”

The loan has a five-year grace period, a five-year disbursement period and 25-year amortization period. It is denominated in U.S. dollars under the Single Currency Facility of the IDB’s Ordinary Capital. The total project cost is US$94.5 million.