Washington, February 27, 2020 – The World Bank Board of Directors approved a US$400 million loan today to support Colombian government efforts in regional planning, resource allocation and the coordination and prioritization of investments. The loan also supports policies to improve the efficiency of urban and rural land markets.
The loan will be used for the Institutional Strengthening for Territorial Development Program, which seeks to improve the integration and collaboration of different territorial agencies to achieve more effective sustainable development. This support will also contribute to improving investment in and delivery of services at the territorial level to make land market management more sustainable.
“Through this program, decisive progress is being made to effectively respond to the development needs of the territories. The actions agreed upon are crucial for organizing and strengthening our activity agenda and reinforcing our regulatory framework to contribute to policy and sector dialogue with respect to comprehensive, sustainable territorial development,” said Luis Alberto Rodríguez Ospino, Director of the National Planning Department. “To this end, we will achieve institutional arrangements that facilitate the linkage of actions and resources of national agencies for the economic and sustainable development of the territories, empowering the regions and rural zones of the country, promoting their leadership and effective autonomy, and guaranteeing development with territorial equality,” he said.
The program is organized around two pillars. The first pillar focuses on the consolidation, coordination and collaboration among territorial institutions to achieve increased regional impact. The second works with institutions and policies for land market management in rural and urban areas to increase productivity and sustainable territorial development.
“Strengthening subnational entities and promoting strategic land use will contribute to improving the lives of Colombians, reducing gaps between the country’s different regions,” said Ulrich Zachau, World Bank Director for Colombia and Venezuela. “The World Bank supports the national government agenda to both strengthen its regional resource allocation systems and to adequately manage urban and rural land markets.”
The proposed operation supports the government’s institutional reforms established in the 2018-2022 National Development Plan (PND), which is designed to achieve inclusive, sustainable and productivity territorial development.
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