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Development Account Projects

Strengthening national capacities for sustainable production and consumption


The Latin America and Caribbean region (LAC) is a major source of renewable and non-renewable resources for the world market. As such, improving resource management in the region promises to have important benefits for both the inhabitants of LAC and the world at large. At present, however, insufficient investment in human capital has led to a shortage of expertise in both the scientific community and the governments of the region.

This project will help to pinpoint the needs of the region and improve coordination and understanding of sustainable resource management among key stakeholders in the scientific community and government administrations. With these new skills, governments and stakeholders will have the tools they need to improve coordination between agencies and develop coherent cross-cutting policies for the sustainable management (SRM) of their resources.


To increase the knowledge and improve the skills of public officials and other relevant stakeholders on sustainable resource management, in particular on its role in establishing lifecycle economies which help to achieve resource-efficient growth and contribute to poverty eradication and sustainable consumption and production.

Expected Accomplishments:

  • Established networks of public officials and other relevant stakeholders (e.g., civil society) with increased awareness and knowledge, improved coordination and skills on sustainable resource management and with access to tools and experiences on SRM and capacity building data collection, modelling, assessment, and policy design.

  • National action plans launched and opportunities identified for SRM.


Implementation Status:

  1. A network was created in Latin America and the Caribbean based on expressions of interest of various institutions and individuals in the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. This network includes about 200 stakeholders from 22 countries. The network is serving the project development, both for understanding the priorities in the region and in the specific countries and for disseminating the results.
  2. Launching the project in Panama
  3. The Steering Committee of the project was set up.
  4. Open consultation with the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean about the scarcity of natural resources (June-October 2010).
  5. Selection of pilot studies in 6 countries:Barbados, Peru, The Dominican Republic, Chile, Argentina,Colombia.
  6. Outreaching and training activities organized in Brazil, Mexico and Argentina.