33227 May 2005 No. 69 A regular series of notes highlighting recent lessons emerging from the operational and analytical program of the World Bank`s Latin America and Caribbean Region INCREASING THE PARTICIPATION OF AFRO- DESCENDANTS IN BANK-FUNDED PROJECTS IN HONDURAS, NICARAGUA, AND PANAMA Josefina Stubbs and Sayo Aoki Afro-descendants represent 7.2%2 (indigenous people and "We know about an environment project here, Afro-Hondurans combined), 13%3 and anywhere between 14 a couple of government employees came here and 77%4 of these countries' respective total populations. once to talk about it. We traveled to Bluefields Afro-descendants are concentrated in a geographic "belt" in to inquire about the necessary process in order the Caribbean/Atlantic coast in all three countries. In Panama, for us to participate, and to submit a request as the "belt" crosses the country from north to south near Colón, a community. We had the impression that the and continues on to the Pacific coast. Yet, in Central America project would finance whatever we needed in the question, "Are there Afro-descendants in Central our community, but we were told that that was America?" is fairly common. not the case. We don't know what to do. We have no information." A World Bank portfolio (projects) review was carried out with the aim of , (i) analyzing the reach of the Bank's Central America Environmentally and Socially Sustainable Devel- opment (CAESSD) projects in Afro-descendant areas, and These were the words of five members of the community (ii) suggesting recommendations for increasing Afro-de- board ­ the local government ­ of the small community of scendent participation in projects. The review was a combi- Pearl Lagoon on the Atlantic coast of Nicaragua. On a nation of field work and desk review and is part of the beautiful morning in May 2004, these five community board World Bank's Latin America and Caribbean region's con- members met to discuss the participation of Afro-descen- tinuing efforts to increase collaboration with indigenous dants in Bank-funded projects in Honduras. The soft peoples and Afro-descendants. breeze that blew and the shade from the trees not only made this a pleasant meeting place, but set the tone for the Poverty maps and Afro-descendant areas discussion. The story recounted by the community members recurred in A simple exercise in which government-issued poverty maps community meetings in Honduras and Panama as well. Afro- were overlayed with Bank-produced maps showing the geo- descendants in Central graphical location of America are largely Afro-descendants, indi- underrepresented in soci- cated that the areas with ety despite their consider the highest poverty den- number. Throughout the sity (the percentage of LatinAmerican and Carib- the poor living in a given bean region, roughly 30% area) were not strongly of the region's population correlated with the loca- of 520 million is ofAfrican tion of Afro-descen- descent. In Honduras, dants. Despite the gen- Nicaragua and Panama1, eral impression thatAfro- 1 descendants are among the poorest inhabitants, the geo- projects were as follows: graphical areas where they have been historically concen- trated in are typically considered "medium poverty areas." Honduras: GEF Biodiversity Conservation, Sustainable Coastal Tourism Project, Land Regularization andAdministra- The situation in each country is as follows: Afro-descendants tion project (PATH), and sub-regional Mesoamerican Barrier in Honduras have higher education levels than the national Reef Project. Only in the case of Honduras do all four projects average. The 2001 Census indicates that Garífunas and Negro cover the areas whereAfro-descendants live; the PATH project Inglés have 9% and 4% illiteracy rates, respectively, compared covers the entire Caribbean coast of Honduras, while the to the national average of 20%. The statistics also reveal the a others do so partially. considerable gap in this indicator that exists between urban and rural areas in the department of Atlántida; an area with a Nicaragua:Atlantic Biodiversity Corridor Project and Second high concentration of Afro-descendants. In Nicaragua, al- Rural Municipal Development Project. The first project covers though Afro-descendants may not live in the most impover- the Atlantic Coast. The latter contains many innovative com- ished municipalities, they do live in the most isolated and ponents to increase community participation by strengthening excluded areas of the Atlantic coast. Only 21% of households rural municipalities, but covers a small area on the southern tip in this area have access to potable water (the national average of the Atlantic coast. is 60%) and 4 to 17.4% have electricity (the national average is 49%). Lack of infrastructure connecting the Atlantic coast to Panama: Biodiversity Conservation Project, Effective Protec- Managua results in a 40-50% increase in the price of seven tion of the San Lorenzo ProtectedArea Project, LandAdminis- basic products compared to those in urban cities. Panama still tration Project, and Rural Poverty and Natural Resources has a long way to go to address the issues related to Afro- Project. Both environmental projects cover the MBC, however, descendants, and no official data regarding Afro-descendants the rural project focuses on the western departments on the in the country is available. Pacific. Nearly half the area where Afro-descendants live in Panama are yet to be impacted by CAESSD projects. Project Reviews Desk Review: Main Findings and Recommendations Ten projects were selected for the review based on the following criteria: (i) the project was managed with CAESSD funds; (ii) the project has actual or estimated The main findings of the desk review were as follows: (i) a lack geographical coverage of areas where Afro-descendants of disaggregated data about Afro-descendants presents addi- live; (iii) the project was implemented within or as a part of tional challenges in planning and programming; (ii) there is the Mesoamerican Biological Corridor (MBC) program; limited coverage of CAESSD projects in Afro-descendant and, (iv) the project was implemented in Honduras, Nicara- areas; and (iii) the principle of equity is clearly evident in Bank gua or Panama. Through 10 CAESSD projects, a total of work - the Bank fights for equal treatment of all (includingAfro- $164.2 million was invested in the Mesoamerican Biological descendants) not because of their race but rather because of Corridor, an area traditionally inhabited by Afro-descen- the conditions in which they live. Recommendations from the dants. This represented 34% of the total amount of desk review include: CAESSD's projects and grants in fiscal year 2004. There remain, however, large areas inhabited by Afro-descen- · The need for increased support to improve the gathering dants that are by-passed by CAESSD projects. of disaggregated data on ethnic groups including for Afro-descendants (census, household surveys, poverty The criteria led to the selection of four projects in Hondu- assessments, etc). ras, two in Nicaragua and four in Panama. The specific · The Bank shoudl consider expanding the project areas to reach Afro-descendant communities. · Afro-descendants should be viewed as active partners in development, and not the objects of development. Focus Group Meetings: Characteristics and Findings In yet another day in May, this time in Ensenada, a small communityofGarífunasafewkilometerseastofTela,Atlántida, 21 community members gathered to discuss ways of improving the participation of Afro-Hondurans in development projects. 2 "We need to develop our own capacity in many areas," said a local institutions is needed; (v) decentralization of fund community member, "so that we can administer the projects management and anti-corruption actions are needed; and, funds, analyze information, and understand how the govern- finally (vi) there was a general agreement that the Bank should ment works with development projects that are destined for play a more active role in advocating on behalf of Afro- our community, so that we can ensure that our community descendants with national governments. benefits from available resources." As they pointed out, in many cases, institutional development at the local, regional Recommendations and examples of good practices and/or and national levels, remains a challenge, as well as a priority for possible entry points include: more effective programming and project implementation. · The use of existing participatory mechanisms to ensure To collect more opinions and qualitative information on Afro- theAfro-community's participation from project design to descendant participation in Bank-funded projects, three focus evaluation. group meetings were held in Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama in mid June 2004. A total of 44 representatives participated in · Considerable pay-offs would arise from investment in the meetings, comprosing 50% government counterparts and capacity building for Afro-descendants aimed at making international organizations, and the other 50% of Afro-de- participatory mechanisms function and sustainable. scendant civil society representatives and academia; although it proved challenging to maintain this balance. This process · The need to integrate the development plans of Afro- was facilitated by the members of the Center for Afro- descendant communities and organizations at different Costarican Women (Centro de Mujeres Afrocostarricenses) in levels (national, regional, and local) into Bank-funded Costa Rica. Each meeting had three clearly defined phases: (i) projects. definition of portfolio review objectives (ii) an open exchange of views; and (iii) suggestions for action-based recommenda- tions. · care should be taken to ensure the inclusion of Afro- descendant communities in the areas selected for A wealth of constructive views were shared during the projects. course of the meeting, and a number of concrete actions were suggested. Nicaragua had the most balanced group · Rather than inventing channels, optimize the use of of participants. Clearly well organized, this group clearly existing communications networks/ mechanisms for shar- have the capacity to contribute significantly to Bank­ ing information. funded projects in the Atlantic coast region. Although the group in Honduras was well-balanced, the overwhelming · Provide support to improve the gathering of disaggre- aggressiveness of one of the civil society representatives gated data for ethnic groups, including Afro-descen- toward the public sector representatives (including the dants. World Bank) overpowered the meeting, limiting the other participants' time and willingness to openly contribute. The Conclusions focus group meeting in Panama was a special case for two reasons: 1) the meeting was held at UNICEF's Latin America and the Caribbean Region Regional Office [there is no Bank The portfolio review revealed that: Resident Mission in the country]; and 2) only one of the three invited government counterparts was present at the (i) There are already many good practices/experiences in meeting, and instead of six invited civil society representa- operations within as well as outside of CAESSD projects, tives, 20 were unexpectedly present. This created some and these can be expanded: in Nicaragua and Panama, the difficult moments for the government counterpart. How- expansion of the geographical outreach of the projects is ever, in the end, the meeting proved to be very constructive. In addition, six civil society representa- tives from the Central American Black Organization (CABO in English/ONECA in Spanish) had met prior to the meeting, and had prepared a list of seven suggestions on how to increase the participation of Afro-descendants in Bank­financed projects. In summary, the major findings of the field work included the following: (i) the community's level of participation is commonly a direct response to their perceived problems; (ii) a social surveillance mecha- nism is needed (more eyes, less mysteries); (iii) lack of information and communication creates "elephants in the air;" (iv) decentralization and coordination with 3 proposed as a way of reach- ing more actively the Afro- Panama: Afro-descendants are descendant communities; geographically spread through- out the country, making it more (ii) Actively incorporating al- challenging to focus on reach- ready existing development ing their communities. Panama plans of Afro-descendants still has a long way to go in would greatly contribute to improving the participation of the planning, designing Afro-descendants, and initial in- and implementing of more terventions could include: 1) strategic programs and projects for Afro-descendants starting open dialogue between the government, the Bank, that can include their participation from the initial and Afro-descendant communities; 2) including already phase; and existing Afro-descendant development plans in the government's agenda as well as in the Bank's portfolio; and (iii) Increasing the visibility of Afro-descendants in Bank- 3) encouraging the government to include questions de- funded projects presents a win-win situation for signed to surface ethnicity in the next census (2010). CAESSD and Afro-descendants. The CAESSD will be able to increase the effectiveness of projects and As the UNDP's Managua-based Country Officer stated, Afro-descendants will be able to contribute to "The Afro-descendants should be seen as having great projects where their voices are effectively included. potential to become active partners in development projects, instead of being seen as just another of the Country-specific development challenges identified during country's problems which needs a solution. By providing this portfolio review in terms of increasing the participation the government with positive data about them, we can of Afro-descendants included: change this viewpoint and have them become the subject of human development." Honduras: Having reviewed the Bank-funded projects, it was seen that they do indeed reach areas with high concen- Notes: tration of Afro-descendants. A 30-year history of self- organization of Afro-descendants and indigenous groups 1 as well as the ratification of ILO Convention 169, has Different sources provide different numbers about the contributed to making these two groups visible in develop- estimated number of Afro-descendants in Panama. ment projects. Key interventions that will continue and 2Censo Nacional de Población y Vivienda 2001. further consolidate the participation of Afro-descendants 3De Ferranti, D. et al. 2003. Inequality in LatinAmerica and the in Honduras include: 1) strengthening the institutional Caribbean: Breaking with History, Pg.83. The World Bank. capacity, particularly of government entities, including the Mexico City. coordination mechanism; 2) continue the advocacy and 4Data available on-line at: http://wbln0018.worldbank.org/lac/ lobbying effort, to maintain and consolidate the active lacinfoclient.nsf/d29684951174975c85256735007fef12/ involvement of Afro-descendants in Bank-funded projects; f09722a39ac12f6785256d7200590085/$FILE/geo_location.pdf and 3) bridge the enormous gap between Afro-descendants in rural and urban areas. About the Author Nicaragua: The imminent development of a new Country This note was prepare by Josefina Stubbs and Sayo Aoki. Assistance Strategy (CAS) for Nicaragua provides a per- Josefina is a Sr. Social Development Specialist with the fect opportunity for the Bank. The CAS could include a World Bank's Latin America and the Caribbean Region new strategy for the Atlantic coast, and the government Social Development Team. Sayo is a Consultant in the same has already shown interest in undertaking this. Putting a group. further focus on the Atlantic coast, and ensuring the participation of Afro-descendant communities in Bank- funded projects will be a key element of the new strategy. For more information about this initiative and to Key interventions in Nicaragua include: 1) strengthening learn of other World Bank projects regarding the public institutional capacity; 2) strengthening open and Afro-Latins, please visit: transparent communication mechanisms between the cen- http://www.worldbank.org/afrolatins tral government and the communities; 3) supporting the development of an Atlantic Coast Development Plan which recognizes Afro-descendants as well as other indigenous About "en breve" groups; and 4) providing financial and technical assistance to the government to operationalize the communication Subscribe to "en breve" by sending an email to mechanism for information sharing and coordination en_breve@worldbank.org mechanism, such as the Comisión Paritaria. 4