OAS grants half a million to Belize projects Excellent!Very GoodGoodFairPoor Rating: (0 votes) Posted: 03/04/2008 - 09:40 PM Author: Trevor Vernon The management board of the Inter-American Agency for Cooperation and Development (CIDI) of the Organization of American States (OAS ) approved the execution of almost 100 projects, to be financed by the Special Multilateral Fund (grant funds) of the Inter-American Council for Integral Development ( FEMCIDI) in 2008.      The total amount of funds for these projects is in the region of 7.5 million US dollars.   The projects approved for Belize are the following: Building Sustainable Community Enterprise Development Capacity for Poverty Alleviation Among Indigenous Communities in Southern Belize - approved in the amount of $99,270.   Jatropha Innovation Center for Community Adapted Technologies and Development in Belize - approved in the amount of $53,000.   Capacity Building Tourism Training and Certification Project - approved in the amount of $95,000.   FEMCIDI is a grant fund that finances technical cooperation projects presented by the Member States and primarily directed toward promoting the human capacity development of their citizens and the strengthening of government institutions. Priority areas for funding are education, sustainable development and environment, democracy, social development and the creation of productive employment, culture, science and technology, economic integration and trade, and tourism. In fact, these areas are all matched by departments created within the technical cooperation of the OAS.   FEMCIDI projects adhere to the guidelines defined in the OAS Strategic Plan for Partnership for Integral Development, which recognizes the need to combat poverty and inequality as a common and shared responsibility of the Member States, and as an essential factor in the promotion and consolidation of democracy in the Americas.   The recently approved projects will join the portfolio of 861 FEMCIDI-funded projects implemented in previous years throughout the Americas, within the 34-member states. Upon reaching its 10th anniversary, FEMCIDI will have thus financed a total of 961 projects tallying 87 million US dollars, and which benefited hundreds of communities and thousands of families across the 34-Member States.   The Management Board meeting was chaired by Máximo Romero, Head of the Directorate General for Technical and Scientific Cooperation of the Secretariat of External Relations of Mexico.   Ambassador Alfonso Quiñonez, Executive Secretary for Integral Development and Director General of the Inter-American Agency for Cooperation and Development, represented the OAS at the meeting.   Romero is a Mexican Government employee, whereas Quinones is an employee of the OAS.