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Coordination Reports & Publications

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2008 l ANNUAL REPORT

Rural Territorial Dynamics Program

2008 Annual Report

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Table of Contents• Rural Territorial Dynamics: A positive outcome in 2008• We have laid the foundations for being an instrument of change

IN SEARCH OF ECONOMIC GROWTH WITH SOCIAL INCLUSION AND ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY• Growth - with or without social inclusion? • Territorial dynamics in Chiloe: The strength of extra-territorial

coalitions • Surveys of policies and programs with a territorial focus • Climate change and territorial development • Cultural identity as a driver of territorial development• Ethnic polarization in income distribution and social conflict in

Southern Chile

WORKING IN NETWORKS• A program rich in social capital • Network of sub-national governments works to revitalize rural areas• The Ibero-American Rural Dialogue: a new space for high-level

political exchanges • Journalists’ network: creating a space in public opinion

COMUNICATION FOR SOCIAL CHANGE• Equitierra Magazine: for thinking and acting freely • The program in the international press • Program working papers

BUILDING CAPACITIES• Strengthening ties with Canada • Graduate education for territorial development• Communities of practice for rural territorial development • Rimisp organizational development: working with our partners to

build capacities • Spaces for collaboration and dialogue

MANAGEMENT AND PROGRESS• Respecting the program’s complexities: the monitoring and

evaluation system • Advisory Board and Coordination Unit • Financial Summary

• Contact

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n order to systematically develop an idea, one must en-gage in creative thought, the expansion of knowledge and, above all else, sensible observation. One of the necessary

steps of this process is addressing the errors of action and omission that are part of any new undertaking so that one can move forward on a firm foundation. The Rural Territorial Dynamics Program Annual Report, which Rimisp is submit-ting to its collaborators and partners, is designed to form part of this effort. After 18 months of work, the program has achieved innovative and methodologically robust results that

show high levels of involvement of people and rural organizations from areas characterized by conditions of poverty.

This program is meant to address aspects such as the dynamics of rural areas, the forces that allow some and not others to express their capacity for development, the circumstances under which conditions that are favorable or limiting for growth are detected, and contexts that promote or limit social inclusion. The goal is to contribute to the design and implementa-tion of more comprehensive, transversal and effective public policies that add to economic growth with greater social equity and environmental sustainability. One hundred very different organizations in a dozen countries around the region have made a commitment to this effort, and that emerging social network is in itself a result of which we are very proud.

For Rimisp, this program represents a challenge in several senses. The first is the task of ensuring that the conceptual framework of rural territorial development leads to concrete alternatives for action. We must honor the tremendous commitment that our donors have made by placing their trust in us and investing very important resources in these initiatives. We also have a moral obligation to the organizations and people who are taking these ideas as their own and working in different ways to make contributions. Finally, and most importantly, this program has to make a difference. It has to affect approaches, strategies and policies; it has to lead to the development of new networks and collaborations; it has to build the capacities of social actors. In other words, it has to do its part to transform rural societies so that they can move towards greater economic growth, more social inclusion and higher levels of environmental sustainability.

I am therefore very pleased to present the progress that has been made by this program during 2008. We look forward to receiving reactions and suggestions from our readers, partners and collaborators, as they will undoubtedly help make the work that we do in 2009 and beyond even more fruitful.

German EscobarExecutive Director Rimisp

Rural Territorial Dynamics: A positive outcome in 2008

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he Rural Territorial Dynamics program has been made pos-sible by the collaboration of over 100 organizations from Latin America and around the world. The 2008 Annual Report is a

rendering of accounts for our partners and collaborators.

We also hope that this document helps establish a dialogue with many agents of change who are searching for allies in their ef-forts to transform Latin American rural societies. We invite them to consider this program as a possible source of ideas, practical experiences, analysis or new relationships with partners who can complement their own capacities.

At the beginning of the year, the program’s Advisory Council approved a plan that instructed us to dedicate most of our attention during this initial period to the development of solid foundations for future work. Specifically, the goals that were established involve finding key partners in 10 countries and developing strategies and methods, pilot research and capacity building experi-ences, communications platforms and a coordination team.

We also wanted to begin to build a unique work culture that would help us to address the fol-lowing issue: We believe that each program partner should have more space in which to explore new paths that have the potential to profoundly renew the way of thinking of doing rural develop-ment. We also feel that the partners should come together to answer the questions that inform the program. These include:

¿Which factors determine territorial development dynamics that are charac-terized by a virtuous, localized cycle of economic growth, social inclusion and environmental sustainability?

What type of concerted public action –including but not limited to public policy- can be effective in the encouragement or promotion of this type of rural territorial development?

In the pages that follow, we describe the degree to which we have met our commitments. I be-lieve that last year we laid a solid foundation that will allow the program to achieve high quality, important results, effects and impacts. Furthermore, I believe that that work will make it possible for the program to serve as an instrument that encourages and supports changes in rural Latin American societies.

We have selected a sample of the results and effects achieved by this program in order to pro-vide an overview of the type of contributions that are beginning to emerge from the work of our partners and collaborators. We cannot include everything that has been done and produced in this type of summary. Readers who would like more information are cordially invited to visit our website, www.rimisp.org/dtr

This program is a platform that is available to all who wish to use it to implement actions de-signed to help revitalize rural Latin America with a sense of social justice. We invite you to join us in this effort.

Julio A. BerdegueProgram Coordinator

We have laid the foundations for being an instrument of change

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1 In search of economic growth with social inclusion and environmental sustainability

• Growth - with or without social inclusion?

• Territorial dynamics in Chiloe: The strength of extra-territorial coalitions

• Surveys of policies and programs with a territorial focus

• Climate change and territorial development

• Cultural identity as a driver of territorial development

• Ethnic polarization in income distribution and social conflict in Southern Chile

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Growth - with or without social inclusion?

he Nicaraguan municipalities of Tisma, Nandasmo, Catarina,

Granada, Potosí, Buenos Aires, Rivas and El Tortuguero,

which are home to 4% of the country’s population, have

one thing in common. Of the nation’s 153 municipalities, they are

the only ones that have increased per capita consumption and

decreased poverty and inequalities in the distribution of consump-

tion in recent years. In contrast, another 48 municipalities that

house 31% of the population present negative results in these

three areas (See Table 1).

Maps of territorial

dynamics in Chile,

Ecuador, Nicaragua

and Peru offer a quali-

tative vision of growth.

The studies, which

integrate data from

national standards

of life surveys and

censuses, examine

each country at a ter-

ritorial level in order to

observe the changes

that have taken place

in terms of growth,

poverty and inequal-

ity. The result is a

varied panorama that

speaks of important

sub-national differ-

ences.

The first four studies were implemented in Chile, Ecuador, Nicaragua

and Peru. They record changes in per capita income (in Chile) and

consumption or per capita spending (in the other three countries)

as well as variations in income distribution (or spending) and the

incidence of poverty. In each case, the analyses cover two moments

in time: 1992 and 2002 in Chile; 1998 and 2005 in Nicaragua; 1993

and 2005 in Peru; and 1995 and 2006 in Ecuador. Similar studies

are at an advanced stage of development in Mexico, Guatemala,

El Salvador, Honduras, Colombia, Bolivia and Brazil.

The study applies the Small Area Estimates method, which has

been broadly utilized to build poverty maps. This method allows

researchers to combine data from standard of living surveys and

population censuses in order to obtain indicators of wellbeing

with high levels of spatial disaggregation.

This allows us to go beyond national averages to consider the ter-

ritorial aspect of development in Latin America. For example, even

though their respective economies have shown very different rates

of growth, less than 10% of the population in Chile, Nicaragua and

Ecuador live in administrative units characterized by dynamics of

growth with social inclusion. Peru has more even patterns, with

38% of the provinces (home to one fifth of the population) having

undergone positive changes in the three indicators analyzed. The

results are also shown on maps that indicate the different types

of territorial dynamics, as illustrated in Figure 1.

Figure 1. Nicaraguan Municipalities: Change in per capita

consumption, incidence of poverty and income distribution,

1998 – 2005

“The Rural Territorial Dynamics program in Ecuador is analyzing areas of the Tungurahua province where interesting dynamics have met with a great deal of success in satisfying a local market with small scale production. We know that there are many highly valued processes with citizen participation in Tungurahua that have been promoted by various social actors. One interesting aspect is that Tungurahua is the only province in Ecuador in which the three most important indigenous organizations are working together to implement a process of as-sociation with the participation of local actors in order to improve the region’s productive process to benefit the entire population.”

Pablo Ospina, Coordinator of the Research Project in Ecuador.

T

COSTA RICA

Pacific Ocean

Caribbean Sea

Change in consumption,poverty and Gini Index

(1) W-W-W(2) W-W-L(3) W-L-W(4) W-L-L(5) L-W-W

(6) L-W-L(7) L-L-W(8) L-L-L

N

S

EO

HONDURAS

LEGEND

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Our researchers also looked at areas in which there have been

positive changes in per capita income or spending and one

of the two social inclusion indicators (incidence of poverty or

income distribution). Eighteen percent of Chile’s municipalities,

which house 25% of the country’s population, present such

results. This is also true of 29% of the provinces in Peru (home

to a little over half of the population); 9% of the municipalities in

Nicaragua (with 6% of the population); and 6% of the parishes

in Ecuador (with over one third of the population).

Most of the population in Chile, Nicaragua and Ecuador (66%,

83% and 55%, respectively) lives in municipalities/parishes that

have not experienced positive changes in per capita income

(Chile) or per capita spending (Nicaragua and Ecuador). Over

70% of the municipalities in Chile and Nicaragua and over

90% of the parishes in Ecuador are in this category.

In Peru, 28% of the

p rov inces , wh ich

house about one fifth

of the population, do

not present positive

changes in per capita

spending.

Nearly one third of

Chile’s municipalities,

which are home to

29% of the popula-

tion, did not show

significant decreases

in their poverty rates. In Nicaragua and Ecuador, 86% of the

administrative units have failed to reduce poverty. Those areas

are home to 90% and about half of the nations’ populations,

respectively. The situation in Peru is somewhat better given

that “only” half the provinces, which are home to one third of

the population, have not reduced poverty.

In Chile, 44% of the population lives in the 45% of the mu-

nicipalities that have not improved income distribution. In

Nicaragua, 45% of

the municipalities,

which house 33%

of the population,

are in this situa-

tion. In Peru, 44%

of the provinces

have not improved

in this area, which

is concerning i f

one considers that

they are home to

three quarters of

the country’s inhabi-

tants. In Ecuador,

most parishes do

not present progress

in terms of income

distribution, and this

situation involves

90% of the popu-

lation.

The worst situation is that of the territories in which the indica-

tors are stagnating or moving in the wrong direction. According

to the study, nearly 80% of Ecuador’s parishes and 50% of its

population present dynamics of non-growth and an absence

of improved social conditions. In Peru and Nicaragua, nearly

one fourth of the provinces or municipalities, with about one

fifth of the population, are in this situation.

In Chile, only 11 municipalities, which have 6% of the popula-

tion, are in that situation.

Table 1 summarizes the results in all of the categories for the

administrative units in the four countries.

“One of the main results of the research

was that only 38% of Peru’s provinces

demonstrate dynamics of economic

growth with a reduction in poverty and

inequality. There are many factors that

could explain these dynamics, such

as differentiated access to goods

and public services and the strength

of local institutions.”

Javier Escobal, Coordinator of the

Research Project in Peru

“The most interesting thing was how

stagnated territorial dynamics are in

Nicaragua. Territories that saw improve-

ments between 1998 and 2005 are the

exceptions to the rule. Economic growth

dynamics with a reduction in poverty

and inequality are very concentrated

geographically in Nicaragua. There

have been improvements in places in

which new activities like tourism have

been generated or in which the price of

products like milk have increased. This

does not mean that there are processes

that are inclusive for the poor, but at least

small scale producers have had better

milk prices, and in some areas of the

Pacific region new employment oppor-

tunities that are not linked to agriculture

and livestock have emerged.”

Ligia Gomez, Coordinator of the Research

Project in Nicaragua

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Table 1. Changes at the sub-national level in per capita income and spending, poverty and distribution of per capita income or spending

I. Greater per capita income or spending, less poverty, greater distribution of income or spending

II. Greater per capita income or spending, less poverty, no improvement in distribution of income or spending

III. Greater per capita income or spending, no improvement in regard to less poverty, better distribution of income or spending

IV. Greater per capita income or spending, no improvement in poverty incidence, no improvement in income or spending distribution

V. No improvement in per capita income or spending, less poverty, better distribution of income or spending

VI. No improvement in per capita income or spending, less poverty, no improvement in distribution of income or spending

VII. No improvement in per capita income or spending, no improvement in poverty, better distribution of income or spending

VIII. No improvement in any aspect

Type

Total

ChileMunicipalities %

16 5.0

11 3.4

113 35.0

57 17.5

42 13.0

47 14.6

36 11.1

323 100

1 0.3

74 38

10 5

0 0

20 10

6 3

0 0

49 25

195 100

36 18

8 5

12 8

4 3

9 6

0 0

67 44

48 31

153 100

5 3

8 1

3 0.3

4 0.4

65 6

70 6

59 5

879 81

1088 100

0 0

Provinces % Municipalities % Parishes %

Peru Nicaragua Ecuador

Territorial dynamics maps to be produced for 11 countries

Last year, we produced territorial dynamics maps for four countries: Nicaragua (by researchers from Nitlapan Institute of the Central American University and the Danish Institute for International Stud-ies), Ecuador (Simon Bolivar Andean University), Peru (Analysis for Development Group) and Chile (Rimisp-Latin American Center for Rural Development and the Ministry of Planning).

Reports for seven other countries will be made available during the first quarter of 2009:• Mexico (by researchers from the Mexico School)• Guatemala (Rafael Landivar University)• Honduras (Sustainable Development Network)• El Salvador (Economic Commission for Latin America and the

Caribbean)• Colombia (University of Los Andes)• Bolivia (Tierra Foundation and the Institute for Development

Policy and Management of the University of Manchester)• Brasil (University of São Paulo)

Data from nearly 200 million households in 11 countries will have been analyzed for this effort.All of the reports will be published in the Documents section of the Program´s website: www.rimisp.org/dtr/documentos

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Pro-Poor GrowthThe Role of Institutions

Geography, trade and economic activity

do not generate development on their

own. We know that institutions play a key

role in determining who takes advantage

of the opportunities derived from factors

like natural resources, geographic location

or the insertion of the territory in certain

commercial circuits or value chains and

how they do so.

The challenge is moving from this general

statement to a better understanding of the

role of specific institutions. This includes

legal or normative frameworks as well

as entities that are linked to the power

structure that determine how surpluses

and opportunities are distributed.

In order to get at this complex issue, the

program has established an alliance with

the project “Improving Institutions for Pro-

Poor Growth” (IPPG). This global project

has research activities in Europe, Africa,

Asia and Latin America. It is coordinated

by Professor Kunal Sen of the University

of Manchester’s Department of Econo-

mics and Policy. In Latin America, IPPG

implements activities in Ecuador and

Bolivia under the general coordination

of Alexander Schejtman, one of Rimisp’s

lead researchers.

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A New Deal for Rural Latin America

On May 12, 2008, former President of Chile Ricardo Lagos Escobar offered a speech entitled “A New Deal for Rural Latin America” at the Latin American Meeting of Intendants, Governors and Prefects for Rural Development, which was held in Santiago de Chile.

Lagos referred to public policies that should be adopted in view of the region’s “new rural complexity” and proposed revisiting the idea of creating a system of government to facilitate the development of rural areas of Latin America and the Caribbean. The paragraphs that follow contain extracts of this speech, which can be viewed in its entirety in the Documents section of www.rimisp.org/dtr/documentos

“The food crisis, the environmental impact of agricultural activities, and the persistence of poverty and inequality are three clear signals that all is not well, and that we must develop a new relationship with rural Latin America that stimulates revitalization in the rural world with a sense of social justice.”

“The question is how this diversity of public and private actors can become an effective agent of development in their regions. It is not easy because social inequality works against the construction of consensuses. But it is possible and there is suf-ficient evidence of this in many of the policies and programs that are being promoted in the region. This is one of the main riches of the territorial approach to rural development that has been gaining ground in the past few years: it emphasizes the need to stimulate and support the creation of collective actors that are deeply rooted in their territories who can reach consensus regarding a vision of the future and project the type of actions and investments that are needed in order to move in that direction.

“… I would like to refer to the challenge of good government for rural areas. The recent World Bank World Development Report that focuses on issues of agriculture, the rural world and development identified numerous innovations in public policy and private initia-tives that could truly contribute to the wellbeing of rural societies. But the report hit a nerve when it stated that many of these inno-vations do not go beyond being ‘islands of success’ because of the weaknesses of systems of government and particularly public institutions. This is a general problem in Latin America, but it is

magnified when we speak of the rural world. I am reiterating what I recently said at the Magallanes University: there is a need for a profound reform of government that allows for a strong, efficient and transparent public sector that is compatible with the demands of the beginning of the third century of our independent life. This government reform is not technocratic work. It is nothing more or less than the work of generating a consensus on a new equation between the State, the market and society in each country that optimizes opportunities of access to social capital that are neces-sary for participating in material and moral progress and offering the best possible social protection of individuals in accordance with our level of income and development. The key concept in this equation is guarantees: the set of basic opportunities and protections that society is in a position to ensure to every person through public policies.

“Governors, prefects and mayors have a tremendous responsibility in how this new deal is built for rural Latin America. Each of their governments has a direct relationship with this real society. For them, aggregate statistics on job creation or loss, environmental pollution or preservation and the valorization of ecosystems, social cohesion or the expansion of violence, good schools or those that reproduce inequality are things that mean something. The issue is how we adapt to this new reality, this urban-rural relationship that does not have the clarity of the past. This is a matter that has never been discussed, and the fact that it is now being discussed makes the work of addressing these tasks much more complex.”

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The Ibero-American Rural Dialogue: a new space for high-level political exchanges

ne of the challenges that this program has accepted is participating in the political processes through which the coalitions, visions and general strategies that inspire rural

development programs and policies in the region are built. One of these spaces is the Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Government.

In close collaboration with the Office of the Secretary General of Ibero-America (SEGIB) and the Ministry of Agriculture and Livestock of El Salvador, the RTD program organized the Ibero-American Rural Dialogue in San Salvador. The meeting was linked to the Conference of Ministers of Agriculture of Ibero-America and formed part of the official program of activities of the XVIII Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Government.

The direct precedent of this activity was the meeting organized in Madrid by SEGIB, the Ministry of the Environment and Rural and Marine Sector (MARM) of Spain, and the Rural Territorial Dynam-ics program. The meeting’s participants agreed on the need to place the issue of the food crisis on the agenda and the political discussion of the XVIII Ibero-American Summit. This strategy had two objectives:

1. for the Heads of State and Government to offer politi-cal statements on this crucial matter; and

2. to identify opportunities to respond to the crisis based on Ibero-American cooperation, paying special attention to the countries or sub-regions that have been affected the most.

A decision was made to hold the Ibero-American Rural Dialogue, which would feature the participation of diverse public and private actors from throughout Ibero-America. The event took place in Sep-tember 2008, one month prior to the Summit. Over 70 people

from nearly 40 non-governmental organizations, cooperation agen-cies, universities, the private sector and ministries of Ibero-America participated in the exchange.

The discussion focused on two main topics: the food crisis and rural territories. The result was a document directed at the IX Conference of Ministers of Agriculture and, through it, the Heads of State and Government of Ibero-America. The text includes a series of recommendations agreed to by the forum participants. The Ministers of Agriculture of Ibero-America decided to adopt the recommendations proposed by the Dialogue, including installing the forum as a permanent element of the process of future Ibero-American Summits of Heads of State and Government.

Extract of the El Salvador Declaration

The El Salvador Declaration, which was agreed to and signed by the representatives of the Ministries of Agriculture of the Ibero-American nations, contains two sections that make specific mention of the Ibero-American Rural Dialogue:

“… We agree:Paragraph 14: To welcome the recommendations of the Ibero-American Rural Dialogue and to propose that the agenda of the XVIII Ibero-American Summit include the topic of the food crisis so that specific responses can be proposed at the regional level.

Paragraph 15: To recommend that the Office of the Secretary General of Ibero-America (SEGIB) consider including the Ibero-American Rural Dialogue as an activity that generates information and analysis and contributes to the Ibero-American Conferences of Ministries of Agriculture.“

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Participant’s Remarks

“[The Ibero-American Rural Dialogue] is an excellent opportunity to share information and promote strategies directed at improving the living conditions of our rural populations. The current situation favors countries like ours that produce and export because we can take advantage of the increase in agricultural prices to enhance productivity and access to internal, regional and world markets.”. Mario Ernesto Salaverria, Minister of Agriculture of El Salvador.

“There is a need to give priority to food safety and to generate initiatives for retaining young people in the rural sectors of Latin American nations. Galo Larenas, Ambassador of Ecuador in El Salvador and representative of his country at the IX Ibero-American Conference of Ministers of Agriculture.

“The increase in food prices can be handled in a positive manner. This is a great opportunity for Latin America because almost all of the countries are net exporting nations, with the exception of El Salvador, Mexico and Venezuela. An adequate management and administration policy that pro-tects the poorest consumer sectors and decreases negative impacts could increase production for exportation”. Martin Pineiro, Director of Grupo CEO, Argentina.

“There is a need to promote family farming, social protection and nutritional health at the national level…. Nutritional education is essential to en-suring food safety for Latin American peoples”. Jose Graziano da Silva, FAO, Assistant Director General for Latin America and the Caribbean.

“From ECLAC’s perspective, flat subsidies are not an optimal response to the food crisis. We must focus on the most vulnerable populations and those who have the greatest need. Prior-ity should be given to children under the age of five, breastfeeding mothers and pregnant women”. Martine Dirven, Official responsible for ECLAC’s Productive and Business Devel-opment Division.

Mario Ernesto Salaverria, Minister of Agriculture of El Salvador.

Martin Pineiro, Director of Grupo CEO, Argentina.

Martine Dirven, Official responsible for ECLAC’s Productive and Business Development Division.

Jose Graziano da Silva, FAO, Assistant Director General for Latin America and the Caribbean.

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ANNUAL REPORT l 2008

The program in the international press

he activities and products of the Rural Territorial Dynamics program have had an important presence in the media in Latin America and some English-language written media

outlets. In this report, we present some of the most noteworthy articles and interviews that appeared in the Latin American media during 2008.

The Ecuadorean news-paper El Mercurio de Cuenca published an interview with the Co-ordinator of the RTD program, Julio Berde-gue, in August. The piece, which is entitled “Rural Development Is Not An Illusion,” is a conversation with journalist Alberto Or-donez, a member of the Rural Press Network. Berdegue states that Latin American rural development “is not

only an economic and productive problem,” and that it must be viewed from the point of view of the consolidation of public poli-cies within government agencies and the unfaltering participation of social sectors.

Berdegue also was interviewed by a journalist from the Bolivian newspaper La Razon. The article, which appeared in June 2008, was entitled “Bolivia Needs a Citizen Consensus.” When asked about inequality and rural poverty in that nation, Berdegue stated that “Bolivia is a country of contrasts. It became a point of refer-ence because of rural policies such as the Popular Participation Law but it also presents some of the highest levels of poverty and inequality.”

Fifty-eight articles were published in digital media and news-papers from Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile and Mexico, including Pagina 12 (Argentina), Agencia Brasil, Los Tiempos (Bolivia), El Mercurio (Chile), Soitu (Spain), El Financiero and Notimex (Mexico), Yahoo Noticias and Terra Noticias, during the Governors’ meet-ing in May.

The Journalists’ Meeting led to the publication of around 26 articles. Pieces written by network members appeared in Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru, in media outlets such as La Razon and La Prensa (Bolivia), O Estado de Sao Paulo, A Tribuna, Jornal de Piracicaba (Brazil), La Discusion (Chillan, Chile), El Espectador and El Tiempo (Colombia), El Mercurio and El Comercio (Ecuador) and La Republica (Peru).

In September and October, eight substantial articles about the Ibero-American Rural Dialogue appeared in newspapers such as El Espectador (Colombia), El Mercurio (Ecuador), La Republica (Peru), O Estado de Sao Paulo (Brazil), La Discusion (Chillan, Chile), and a report in a specialized journal published in Argentina called Super Campo. There were also short pieces about the event and its objectives and Rimisp in over 25 print and digital publications from various Ibero-American nations.

“It is very difficult to break down conditions of poverty and the lack of opportunities. There is no quick fix, no policy that can resolve things in a period of 24 hours.” Julio Berdegue Interview published in Diario El Mercurio, Cuenca, EcuadorAugust 2008

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INFORME ANUAL l 2008INFORME ANUAL l 2008

5 Management and progress

• Respecting the program’s complexities: the monitoring and evaluation system

• Advisory Board and Coordination Unit

• Financial Summary

Full report available at: http://www.rimisp.org/FCKeditor/UserFiles/File/documentos/docs/pdf/DTR/Annual_report_english.pdf

Rural TerritorialDynamics Program

AnnualReport

2009

Latin American Center for Rural Development

This Annual Report offers us a new opportunity to render account and to share the work and results of the Rural Territorial Dynamics Program with our partners and collaborators.

In the introduction to the 2008 report, we said that the program was at a stage in which we were looking to “establish solid bases for achieving significant and high-quality results, effects and impacts.” During 2009, the program’s 54 partners and 120 collaborators have generated an impressive set of partial and final results through research, capacity building, communications, international relations and, most recently, incidence work in dif-ferent areas of public action.

The program has facilitated spaces for dialogue, critical analysis of proposals by external specialists, and project monitoring and evaluation aimed at ensuring that everything we do is significant and of the highest possible quality.This report presents what was done and achieved in 2009 in a brief and necessarily partial form. We invite readers to learn more about the issues that interest them most on our website, www.rimisp.org/dtr, and on our partners’ websites.

If we had to summarize the progress that was made in 2009, we would have to say that we built on the bases constructed in 2008 in order to develop sufficient high-quality inputs to move forward more decidedly in 2010 in the collective construction of proposals for the societies in which we participate. The immediate challenge is to integrate and synthesize these inputs in an innovative vision and strategies for the sustainable development of rural territories.

We have 30 months left in which to turn these results into products for the transformation of rural societies. I invite our partners and collaborators to maintain their focus on the goals that this program is designed to achieve:

• The formation of coalitions that build and promote an innovative vision and strategies for the sustainable development of rural territories.

• A vision of the revitalization of rural territories with social justice and environmental sustainability and strategies for implementing it.

• Changes in various areas of public and private action consistent with the program’s vision and strategies.

Julio A. BerdegueProgram Coordinator

Moving towards the generation of proposals

Section one: RuralDynamics in the Territories

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RTD program researchprojectsIn early 2009, the program completed the analysis of dynamics of social and economic change in over 10,000 municipalities (or their equivalents) in 11 countries. Using the Elbers et al.1 method, geographic areas characterized by different development outcomes were identified. Based on these maps, 19 territories in 11 countries were selected as sites for the program based on their dynamics of economic growth and social inclusion, in order to concentrate research and capacity building activities in them. Table 1 lists the territories

selected and Figure 2 shows their geographic locations.

The project coordination teams presented proposals that were evaluated by two anonymous reviewers and then adjusted, based on the comments received. Each research project fits into the general meth-odological framework of the applied research component, which has been modified progressively according to the partial results obtained and the needs of the research activities.

1 Elbers, C., Lanjouw, J. O., Lanjouw, P. 2003. “Micro-level Estimation of Poverty and Inequality.” Econometrica 71(1): 355-364.

Country

Bolivia

Brazil

Brazil

Brazil

Chile

Chile

Colombia

Ecuador

Ecuador

El Salvador

Guatemala

Honduras

Mexico

Mexico

Nicaragua

Nicaragua

Peru

Peru

Peru

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

11.

12.

13.

14.

15.

16.

17.

18.

19.

Territory

Chaco Tarijeno

Cariri Paraibano

Costa de Santa Catarina

Jiquirica Valley, Bahia

Central Chiloe

Interior dryland of the O’Higgins Region

Upper Suarez and Lake Fuquene basin

Loja

Tungurahua

Northern riverbank of Humedal Cerron Grande

Southeastern area of Jutiapa and Jalapa

Olancho

Mezcal region of Oaxaca

South-central Yucatan Region

Macizo de Penas Blancas, La Dalia

Dairy region

Cuatro Lagunas, Cusco

Sierra de Jauja, Junin

Southern Valley of Cusco

Surface in Km2

13.072

7.075

15.000

12.414

3.412

2.153

483

10.793

3.369

570

570

1.009

18.220

628

462

546

954

2.100

3.749

Population

225.366

119.430

1.500.000

309.192

89.000

20.093

35.337

404.835

441.034

70.048

70.000

36.375

490.745

29.900

126.209

16.404

35.000

60.000

88.926



Elbers, C., Lanjouw, J. O., Lanjouw, P. 2003. “Micro-level Estimation of Poverty and Inequality.”

Surface in Km



Elbers, C., Lanjouw, J. O., Lanjouw, P. 2003. “Micro-level Estimation of Poverty and Inequality.”

Surface in Km2

13.072

7.075

15.000

12.414

3.412

2.153

483

10.793

3.369

570

570

1.009

18.220

628

462

546

954

2.100

3.749

Population

225.366

119.430

1.500.000

309.192

89.000

20.093

35.337

404.835

441.034

70.048

70.000

36.375

490.745

29.900

126.209

16.404

35.000

60.000

88.926

12

5

6

1

17

16

11

1918

89

7

13

14

2

4

3

10 15

Table 1. Selected territories

13

The research questions of the 19 projects can be organized into four groups:

1.What explains successful territorial dynamics?Most of the projects include research questions aimed at explaining the territorial differences within the countries, specifically successful dynamics. This is the case of Tarija, Cariri, Santa Catarina, Jiquirica, Loja, Tungurahua, Cerron Grande and the dairy region of Nicaragua.

Other proposals, such as the two from Mexico, are related to the public and social decisions and actions that encourage successful rural territorial development dynamics (the case of Oaxaca) and “exogenous” and “endogenous” phenomena that have influenced the territorial dynamics for the past 20 years (the case of Yucatan).

Some projects explore specific factors in order to explain the dynamics of the territory, such as devel-opment strategies based on the extraction of natural resources (Tarija), the benefit of a specific geographic condition (Tungurahua) or the phenomenon of migra-tion (Yucatan and the dairy region of Nicaragua). The role of stakeholders, social coalitions and institutional frameworks in the development of the territories is also addressed (Tungurahua and Cerron Grande).

2. Links between social actors and coalitions and the institutional frameworkAll projects explore the relationships between social actors, coalitions and institutional frameworks at the territorial scale. While Chiloe, Olancho and La Dalia projects look at social actors and coalitions that have conditioned institutional frameworks that stimulate more successful dynamics, others suggest the direct influence of those actors on local administrations, as is the case in Tarija and Cerron Grande. The inverse is

proposed in Loja, where it is thought that public and private investment stimulated the creation of new networks of relationships in the geographic space, while making production and local business more dynamic.

3. Assets endowment, use and distribution Several projects pose questions that link assets en-dowment, use and distribution with social actors and coalitions. Several analyze how social actors and co-alitions participate in and influence the way in which the territory’s assets are distributed (Tarija, Chiloe, Fuquene, Cerron Grande, Jutiapa and Jalapa, and La Dalia). Others analyze the relationship between assets and institutional frameworks.

Several proposals explore the link between institutional frameworks and the distribution of the territory’s as-sets. Cuatro Lagunas deals with institutional dynamics that explain the heterogeneity observed in the terri-tory. In O’Higgins, work is focused on the institutional framework that allowed the productive transformation in this territory to be socially inclusive. In Nicaragua’s dairy region and Jauja, the projects are designed to determine how public policies contribute to or hinder more inclusive and equitable development. One of the proposals, La Dalia, will explain how the valorization of the territory’s assets is associated with the institutional changes made over the past few years.

4. Environmental services and the conservation of natural capitalSeveral projects address how social coalitions and insti-tutional frameworks favor the conservation of natural capital. Cases of Jutiapa and Jalapa, Cariri, and Yucatan analyze the sustainability of the territorial dynamics and perspectives of those processes in these regions. In O’Higgins, there are plans to explore the elements that have determined socially inclusive development dynamics, but without an adequate management of emerging environmental conflicts.

12

5

6

1

17

16

11

1918

89

7

13

14

2

4

3

10 15

Figure 2: Geographic locations of selected territories

19

Mexico

Territorial dynamics in the south-central Yucatan region: less poverty, less inequality

Though 22% of the population of the municipalities of Acanceh, Cuzama, Huhi and Homun in the Mexi-can state of Yucatan continues to live in poverty, between 1990 and 2005 the number of poor families decreased and their consumption increased in a context of lower inequality. This project explores the reasons for these positive results.

These municipalities belong to what was the country’s henequen (agave) production area until the 1980s. They share borders and a relatively homogenous identity, with similarities in terms of history, economic strategies, culture, natural conditions and physical infrastructure. The territory is home to over thirty thousand people, 52% of whom are of Mayan origin. It has a long history of agricultural activities in which the campesinos’ land is mainly for common use. Its proximity to Merida, good communications, roadways, and the presence of vestiges of Mayan temples, arti-sans, and cenotes (sinkholes) give the municipalities a high potential for tourism.

One of the hypotheses that emerged from the study is that improvements in households’ wellbeing are due to the growth of salaried income and public transfers such as Oportunidades and Procampo. The reduction in transaction (transportation) costs promoted a sala-ried employment process based on the daily work of inhabitants from the territory in Merida and Cancun.

The research indicates that exogenous and endogenous phenomena have influenced the territory’s dynamics

over the past 20 years. At the national level, the re-orientation of the government’s role in the economy, democratization and rural reform is noteworthy. At the local level, the decrease in the henequen economy, the sale of the quasi-governmental company Cordeles Mexicanos (Cordomex) in the early 1990s, and the effects of Hurricane Isidora in 2002 led thousands of people to turn to new types of work. This process led to the economic diversification of the municipalities. In spite of the weight that the manufacturing sector has had as a result of the establishment of textile companies’ maquilas in the early 1990s, their importance has de-creased with the onset of the 21st century whilst that of other activities has increased. Salaried work at the maquilas and other urban activities have reduced the supply of family labour affecting intense traditional activities at home. However, family farming based on milpa-production (corn, beans and squash) and back-yard gardening (vegetable plots, herbs and livestock) persists, though it is now managed by the elderly.

Partners: Program of Studies on Economic Change and Sustainability of Mexican Agriculture (PRECESAM), Economic Studies Center of the Mexico School, Autonomous University of Yucatan

In order to better understand the dynamics observed in these municipalities, addi-tional work will be conducted on the following: identifica-tion and description of new stakeholders in the territory and their networks or coali-tions; the role of young people as stakeholders based on their educational level and remunerated work; the effect of government transfers and other public programs in the territory; changes based on the loss of hegemony of the PRI (Institutional Revolutionary Party) and on the incorpora-tion of the Protestant faith; changes and the state of agri-culture, land use, biodiversity and other natural resources; changes in nutritional and eat-ing patterns; and the family manufacturing economy.

Coming soon…Mexico

20

Nicaragua

Governance in the use of and access to natural resources in the Macizo de Penas Blancas Nature Reserve

The Macizo de Penas Blancas Nature Reserve

experienced stagnation in average consumption

between 1998 and 2005. However, the terri-

tory also experienced improvements in its Gini

coefficient during that period. What territorial

dynamics have produced the economic and dis-

tributive changes observed? This question is the

point of departure of the study of this territory.

According to our research, the use and control of

land in the Macizo de Penas Blancas Nature Reserve

is the central axis around which revolve the organi-

zational and economic practices of traditional stake-

holders of this territory. Such stakeholders include

the major landowners of La Dalia; the inhabitants

of poor settlements who provide labor for the large

agricultural operations; and the small-scale land-

owners who grow coffee in the highlands, mainly

in the Cua and Rancho Grande regions.

The main hypothesis is that the economic, distribu-

tive and environmental changes observed are due

to the fact that competition among social actors

for the use and control of the land has been car-

ried out increasingly in the environmental field and

has become less of a ‘productivism’ issue. This is

mainly due to:

•The coffee crisis, which led producers to seek

out new niches in the market, such as organic

coffee. This was accompanied by a discourse

on environmentally sustainable development

production in the area of the reserve.

• The increase in the demand

for water for domestic use due

to population growth, which

went from 92,000 inhabitants in

1998 to 126,000 in 2005. This led to

concerns over the reserve’s forest and the

ecological and water services that it provides.

It is the source of 80% of the water used in the

municipalities of Tuma-La Dalia, Rancho Grande,

and Cua, and pollution has been detected in

water sources during the initial stages of coffee

processing (“honey water”).

• International cooperation agencies and mu-

nicipal governments have stepped up efforts to

ensure sustainable development and protection

of the reserve as part of a plan to increase de-

centralization and strengthen the relationship

between the mayor’s office and the community.

This has been expressed, for example, through

the creation of a physical land registry in order

to promote protection and regulate the use of

soil and water; through the formation of the

Municipal Association of Penas Blancas del Norte

(AMUPEBLAN); and through the development of

a Management Plan proposal.

Socios: Nitlapan Institute of Research and Development, Central American University of Nicaragua, Danish Institute for International Studies (DIIS – Denmark)

The research will expand on the actions taken by social actors re-lated to: the use and control of land in the area; how the endow-ment and valorization of assets of social actors has changed; the institutional change associated with the actions of such actors and changes in the endowment and valorization of assets; and the causal relationship between institutional changes promoted by social actors and economic activities and their distribution, the distribution of consumption and poverty, and the environ-mental conditions.

Coming soon…

Nicaragua

Section Two: Capacity Building

54

Conceptual framework and methodology for capacity building In the context of the program, “capacity building” is defined as the process by which the various stakeholders who are important for territorial dynamics acquire new knowledge, capacities and skills in order to work in a coordinated manner and promote changes that simulta-neously bring about economic growth, social inclusion and environmental sustainability.

The main focus should be placed on capacities for improving the quality and effectiveness of collective action, networking, social innovation and social undertakings. Special attention will be paid to strengthening the most socially excluded and poorest groups.

The first capacity building proj-ects are being implemented in six territories in Chile, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Guatemala, El Sal-vador and Honduras. The work for this component in Central America has been reinforced a great deal by the donation made last year by the New Zealand’s International Aid and Develop-

ment Agency (NZAID). The work will provide real experience and practical evidence of what works in rural territo-rial development and what doesn’t, and will channel these messages to those responsible for designing policies and programs as well as opinion-shapers. For a summary of the current situation of each territory in the area of capacity building, see Table 4.

Every territory presents a unique real-ity. In view of this, the methodology and tools were designed to be flexible so that they can adapt to specific circumstances. However, in all of the cases the plan includes the following:

1. Research as a fundamental input for capacity buildingWe start from the basis that an effective capacity building process in a territory must be based on diligent research that identifies the territory to be considered, its social actors and sound hypotheses that clearly estab-lish the main axes of change. Proper research allows for the identification of the most important stakeholders and the role that they play in the territory and provides focus to the work of the capacity building component.

Quito meeting: stepping up the paceThe members of the teams that are carrying out capacity building activities in Honduras, El Salva-dor, Nicaragua, Guatemala, Ecuador and Chile and members of the Coordination Unit met last June 22-24 in Quito.

The members of the Coordination Unit presented the context in which the Capacity Building compo-nent is inserted in the program, its methodologi-cal guidelines and the orientations and proposals for the Communities of Practice. Country teams presented an analysis of the initial situation, which included selection criteria and the main characteristics of the territory, along with propos-als for identifying and working with local leaders, as well as strengths and weaknesses in order to progress in each one of the anticipated products. Lastly, agreements were presented and those responsible for the territories prepared their work plans for the coming months.

Thanks to this fruitful meeting, the rhythm of the component has increased. This initiative was developed in response to one of the main recom-mendations that the Advisory Council made to the Coordination Unit for 2009.

70

Equitierra Magazine: over four thousand subscribed in 2009Overcoming inequalities and the persis-

tence of rural poverty, from the urgent to

the important… Equitierra has dedicated

yet another year to rural issues in Latin

America. During 2009, this publication

experienced favorable development

shown by the increase in subscribers

(4,000 voluntarily subscribed by year’s

end; 60% more than the previous year),

the improvement in the way issues are

handled and the inclusion of multimedia

material in each issue.

Some of the issues developed throughout the year were the food

crisis, climate change and dynamics of growth, inequality and

poverty based on the initial results of the research conducted

by the program in Nicaragua, Peru, Chile and Ecuador. The pub-

lication also addressed innovative initiatives and undertakings

with cultural identity in rural areas in several countries in the

region, the successful experiences of rural Brazil, and the impact

of the global financial crisis on rural poverty in Latin America.

Interviews were held with such important figures as Jose Maria

Sumpsi, Deputy Director of FAO; Yolanda Kakabadse, International

President of WWF; and Robert

Sauve, Vice Minister of Rural

and Regional Development of

the Province of Quebec, Canada.

It was also a year of innovation

for Equitierra. During this period,

spaces that allowed for exchanges

with readers opened up through

Web 2.0 platforms like Facebook,

where we have 400 followers. It

also has a presence in Wobook,

the free digital publications exchange platform, which logged a

total of 12,000 visits to different issues of the magazine during

2009. In addition, multimedia materials such as videos and photo

essays that accompanied Equitierra articles have received nearly

1,000 visits on the Blip TV network. The photo albums posted

in the program’s Flickr gallery (www.flickr.com/rimisp) contain

nearly 600 images that have received over 10,000 visits from

cybernauts from all over the world.

These spaces in social networks allow Equitierra to interact with

its audience and improve its position as an electronic journal.

Equitierra in numbers – 2009 • 2,500 downloads of full issues of Equitierra

occurred this year. Table 5 shows the top five most read articles in 2009.

• 12,000 users of the Wobook platform viewed at least one issue of Equitierra magazine.

• Visitors’ average browsing time on Equitierra’s website was 9 minutes.

Table 5: Top five most read articles of 2009

1. Climate change: rescuing rural knowledge (Cambio climático: al rescate de los saberes rurales)Opinion column / Authors: Manuel Chiriboga and Ana Lucia Torres - Equitierra # 4

3.The main gaps of the 2009 World Development Report (Los grandes ausentes del Informe de Desarrollo Mundial 2009) Article / Author: Maria Elena Montory - Equitierra # 4

4. Crisis and rural poverty in Latin America (Crisis y pobreza rural en América Latina)Opinion column / Authors: Carolina Trivelli and Johanna Yancari - Equitierra # 3

5. Yolanda Kakabadse - Climate change: the new challenge for biodiversity (Cambio climático: el nuevo reto para la biodiversidad) Interview / Author: Jennie Carrasco - Equitierra # 4

2. Halting poverty and revitalizing the rural medium: two priorities in the context of the crisis (Frenar la pobreza y revitalizar el medio rural: dos prioridades frente a la crisis) Article / Author: Sofia Torey - Equitierra # 4

71

The challenge of being in the mediaIn order for the program to reach public opinion with

its results and proposals and create better conditions

for policy incidence, it is essential to have a media

presence. From its inception, the program’s goal has

been to generate permanent contact with journalists

and print media outlets throughout Latin America.

In 2008, it facilitated the establishment of the Rural

Press Network in order to improve the

quality and quantity of press coverage

of key rural issues.

By the end of 2009, the Rural Press Net-

work had 47 members in Chile, Ecuador,

Bolivia, Guatemala, Mexico, Brazil,

Colombia, Peru, Nicaragua, Honduras,

Argentina, Uruguay, Costa Rica, Paraguay,

the Dominican Republic and El Salvador.

While the network was designed to serve

as a space for exchange among journalists

on rural issues and to improve coverage

of such matters in the region’s media, it

soon became clear that this goal would

be very difficult to achieve. It is not the

journalist’s job to endorse a cause, but

to report information objectively in order to generate

public discussion. Meanwhile, the role of the program

should be to make use of the contact generated with

the media in order to keep journalists informed of the

issues under discussion in the rural world in a timely

and agile manner.

The network has been successful in allowing the

program to take a first step towards getting closer to

and establishing links with the written press in Latin

America. After reviewing the process and realizing

the challenges as well as the progress made during

its first year, a new way of looking at the Rural Press

Network emerged. Based on the work with the media

and development of specific campaigns during 2009,

we have reached the conclusion that the Network

should be seen as a channel for providing the media

with current and relevant content.

It is also important to

take advantage of the

positioning that the Rural

Press Blog has achieved.

This is a communication

and opinion tool in which

journalists, researchers,

agents of development

and program partners

participate with issues

and proposals that are

helping build a collective

vision on rural territo-

rial development. The

blog began as a tool for

member journalists but

has become something

much broader and has

generated a solid level of acceptance in the audi-

ence that it reaches. The three most popular entries

in 2009 were: “How will the world crisis affect

Latin America in 2009,” with 8,442 visits, followed by

“Ecuador’s new Constitution: a declaration in favor

of the development model,” written by Pablo Ospina,

RTD program partner, with 3,064 visits, and the article

“Natural biodiversity and cultural wealth: exploring

alternatives for territorial development in Bolivia,”

written by Rimisp RTD-IC project researcher Marcelo

Uribe, with 1,533 visits.

In 2009, the Rural Press Blog had 42,000 views and 88 entries from different authors throughout Latin America.

72

In the media22

During 2009, at least 100 articles were published in nearly 60 media outlets in 15 countries. The following outlets published infor-mation, articles and reports based on the program’s work.

22 All of the articles and reports published about the RTD program are available at www.rimisp.org/dtr/saladeprensa.

Diario Prensa Libre (Guatemala) Contrapunto (El Salvador) Cadena de Noticias (Dominican Republic)

Diario de Centroamerica (Guatemala) El Faro.com (El Salvador) El Caribe (Dominican Republic)

Telediario (Guatemala) EKA - business journal Almomento.net (Central America) (Dominican Republic)

Terra Noticias (Regional) El Ecuatoriano Noticias (Ecuador) El Nacional (Venezuela)

El Periodico de Mexico (Mexico) Noticias Hispanas (Regional) El Heraldo (Honduras)

Globo.com (Brazil) Portal do Agronegocio Goiano (Brazil) El Comercio (Peru)

La Republica (Uruguay) Noticias Agricolas (Brazil) Prensa Grafica (El Salvador)

La Jornada de Michoacan (Mexico) Campo Vivo (Brazil) Houston Chronicle (United States)

Diario La Hora (Ecuador) Business News around El Paso Times (United States) the World (Colombia)

Prensa Indigena (Mexico) Forolacfr – Centro de informacion The New Herald (United States) Finanzas Rurales (Regional)

Informativos.net (Chile) Noticias ABC (Colombia) El Golfo Info (Mexico)

El Comercio (Ecuador) Argenpress (Argentina) Notisistema (Mexico)

Cambio de Michoacan (Mexico) Dinero (Colombia) El Informador (Mexico)

Diario La Republica (Colombia) La Tribuna (Honduras) El Universal (Mexico)

Diario Catarinense (Brazil) ADN (Spain) El Confidencial (Spain)

La Prensa (Nicaragua) Minuto 59 (Venezuela) Aguas Digital (Mexico)

El Nuevo Diario (Nicaragua) Frontera de Mexico (Mexico) SDP Noticias (Mexico)

Diario O Estado de Sao Paulo (Brasil) Soitu (Spain) El Imparcial (Mexico)

Portafolio de Diario El Tiempo The Baja California Chronicle El Mexicano online (Mexico)(Colombia) (United States)

73

The website: the program’s showcaseThe program website launched a new statistics system in 2009. Beginning in May, the Google Analytics system provided detailed reports on the behavior of users on the RTD website such as the total number of visits reg-istered, most frequently viewed pages, documents and reports downloaded, average amount of time spent on the website and countries in which the users are resid-ing. The availability of these statistics has allowed the RTD program’s Communications Team to make important decisions regarding the dissemination of information. The data from May through December 2009 shows clear progress in the number of visits to the website. While there were 11,039 visits between May and August, the website’s visits increased by 56% between September and December with 17,191 total visits. If we narrow down the data further, we observe that there were nearly 5,000 visits in September and October and over 12,000 in November and December, which represents an increase of 153%. See Figure 12.

Website visitors came from 70 countries in 2009. Peru-vian and Mexican nationals represent 10% and 9% of the total, respectively. The statistics also show that most website users speak Spanish, but 13% speak English and 3% Portuguese.

The progressive increase in the number of visits is the result of the successive efforts to optimize the website that took place during the second half of 2009. The launch of the Crisis and Rural Poverty in Latin America project (www.rimisp.org/dtr/crisisypobrezarural) was an important catalyst that produced a significant increase in the number of visits and was accompanied by a Google

AdWords campaign directed at specific audiences. Since the beginning of the campaign in mid-November, it has generated six thousand visits to the Crisis and Rural Povertysection alone. Most of these visits were from users who went to the program website for the first time. A large percentage of users reached the Crisis and Rural Poverty section through search engines and then took the time to view other pages and program sec-tions, thus gener-ating more traffic throughout the site.

The working pa-pers section of the program is one of the most frequently visited pages on the en-tire site. Between July and the end of the year, a total of 2,000 of those documents were downloaded. See Figure 13, which details the most visited RTD website sections.

The Crisis and Rural Poverty section homepage was the most frequently visited page in the Rimisp site during the month of December, surpassing even the Rimisp homepage, which ranked second.

92

Members of the RTD Program Advisory Council

From left to right: Brent Rapson (ex - officio representative of NZAID), Rosalba Todaro (Women’s Research Center, Chile), Jorge Katz (independent consul-tant, Chile, until August 2009), Miguel Urioste (Tierra Foundation, Bolivia), Monica Hernandez (Alternative Foundation, Ecuador), David Kaimowitz (Ford Foundation, Nicaragua), Julio Berdegue (Program Coordinator), Regina Novaes (IBASE, Brazil), Hubert Zandstra (independent consultant, Canada), Merle Faminow (ex- officio representative of IDRC, Uruguay), Eligio Alvarado (Dobba Yala Foundation, Panama) and German Escobar (ex- officio representative, Rimisp, Chile). Missing in the picture: Lazaro Cardenas (political leader, Mexico) and Juan Alberto Fuentes (Minister of Finance, Guatemala).

93

Coordination Unit

Rosamelia AndradeCommunications Coordinator

Francisco AguirreAdjunct Capacity Building Coordinator Since May (1/2 time)

Julio A. BerdegueGeneral Program Coordinator

Lucia CarrascoAdministrator

Manuel ChiribogaAdjunct Coordinator(20% time)

Gilles ClicheAdjunct Project Coordinator NZAID (1/2 time)

www.rimisp.org/dtrRural Territorial Dynamics Program

Rimisp

Full report available at: http://www.rimisp.org/FCKeditor/UserFiles/File/documentos/docs/pdf/DTR/Annual-Report-2009.pdf

Coordination Web projects & Media Campaigns

Link to website: www.territorios-rimisp.org

1

Dar a la población ruralpobre la oportunidadde salir de la pobreza

Centre latino-américain pour le développement rural

IEP Instituto de Estudios Peruanos

SINTESIS PARA LA PRENSA - Nº3Preparado por el Programa Dinámicas Territoriales Rurales de Rimisp - Centro Latinoamericano para el Desarrollo RuralNoviembre 2009

Crisis y pobreza en América Latina

Remesas enretroceso

on la actual crisis económica mundial, la caída en los flujos de remesas se prevé como uno de

los impactos relevantes que sufrirán los hogares de menores recursos en muchos Estados de América Latina.

Esta disminución es más importante en los países como El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, México, Nicaragua y República Dominicana, donde el porcentaje de hoga-res que recibe remesas representa más del 20% de los hogares a nivel nacional y rural, y constituyen más del 25% de los ingresos del hogar, según indica un estudio “Crisis y Pobreza Rural en América Latina”1 llevado a cabo por Rimisp, el Instituto de Estudios Peruanos y el Fondo Internacio-nal de Desarrollo Agrícola este año en 11 países latinoamericanos.

Hasta mediados de 2009, casi ningún país de esta región había contemplado medidas específicas para mitigar el impacto de la reducción de las remesas, y el tema ha recibido escasa atención en la prensa.

Puntos Claves

• En algunos países, las remesas tienen una importante participación en las cuentas externas, y su disminución ya comenzó a evidenciarse a fines de 2008.

• La emigración de algunos miembros del hogar, sea dentro o fuera del país, representa una forma de diversificación del ingreso de muchos hogares pobres, que está siendo afectada por la crisis.

• En algunos sectores de la población, las remesas están cubriendo una creciente proporción de los gastos familiares y, en muchos casos, pueden hacer la diferencia entre caer o no en la pobreza.

• Los hogares rurales pobres están entre los más afectados con la reducción de remesas, tornándose su situación más crítica aún.

• Una contracción en las remesas puede impactar el índice de recuento de pobreza general.

C

1 El proyecto “Crisis y pobreza rural en América Latina” es una iniciativa conjunta de Rimisp-Centro Latinoamericano para el De-sarrollo Rural, el Fondo Internacional de Desarrollo Agrícola (FIDA) y el Instituto de Estudios Peruanos (IEP). El estudio en que se basa esta publicación fue financiado por el Centro Internacional de Investigaciones para el Desarrollo (www.idrc.ca) a través del programa Dinámicas Territoriales Rurales coordinado por Rimisp. La publicación de los documentos de la serie Crisis y Pobreza Rural ha sido posible gracias a una donación del FIDA. Para acceder a la serie, visite www.rimisp.org/dtr/crisisypobrezarural.

2




Reducción de ingresos para países y para hogares

Una expresión de la crisis económica mundial es que la cantidad y frecuencia de las remesas disminui-rá, afectando no solo las cuentas externas de varios países, sino también los ingresos de los hogares, con efectos significativos en la pobreza rural.

El estudio “Crisis y Pobreza Rural en América Latina”, que abarcó 11 países de la región, indicó que en nueve de ellos la reduc-ción de remesas afectará de manera significativa la incidencia de la pobreza. Por esto, en esos países se deberán tomar medidas que permitan a los ho-

gares receptores de remesas compensar la caída en ellas. La prioridad son los países centroamericanos, donde las remesas constituyen en promedio el 12% de los ingresos de los hogares rurales.

Según el estudio, lo central es crear me-canismos simples, temporales (es decir, con mecanismos automáticos que cierren los programas una vez pasada la crisis) e idealmente que contemplen los incentivos adecuados para el desarrollo de otras activi-dades generadoras de ingresos o al menos un conjunto de externalidades positivas.

Las remesas en las cuentas externasFactores como la disminución del empleo o de los salarios en Estados Unidos y otros países que son fuente de remesas para México y los estados centroamericanos, han tenido ya un impacto sobre las cuentas ex-ternas, situación que empezó a evidenciarse a fines de 2008 e inicios del presente año.

MÉXICO. De acuerdo al Banco de México, durante 2008 el ingreso de recursos al país por concepto de remesas familiares perdió fortaleza, particularmente en el segundo semestre del año. En 2008, el monto de remesas sumó 25,145 millones de dólares, lo que significó caídas anuales de 3.6% (931 millones de dólares). En enero pasado, los flujos cayeron 11.9%, al situarse en 1,571.77 millones de dólares, cifra que contrasta con los 1,783.67 millones de dólares reportados en enero de 2008.

HONDURAS. Las remesas son la principal fuente de divisas del país. Aunque el monto recibido entre 2001-2008 ha aumentado sustancialmente (ver gráfico), este ha sido fluctuante y las tendencias cambiaron a partir del segundo semestre de 2008, en que se observó una disminución de los envíos. Según las tendencias de 2007, cuya proyección para enero de 2008 era de US$ 3,050 millones, esto significaría una disminución en la proyección de los envíos de aproximadamente un 11%, porcentaje que podría aumentar en la medida que se profundice la crisis en Estados Unidos.

REPÚBLICA DOMINICANA. Las remesas son la segunda fuente de divisas para este país, superada solo por los aportes del turismo.

Las remesas de los mi-grantes en el extranjero representan un f lujo importante de recursos en muchos países lati-noamericanos, tanto de manera agregada (como entrada de capitales) como de manera privada (como ingreso adicional para las familias de los migrantes a nivel de los hogares).

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Se estima que una de cada cuatro familias dominicanas recibe remesas y el 82% de estas proceden de los Estados Unidos. La Unidad de Inteligencia Económica de “The Economist” pronosticó que para el 2009 las remesas caerían en un 10%.

EL SALVADOR. Tanto en términos del PIB como de la balanza comercial (ver gráficos), las remesas son de vital importancia para el funcionamiento de la economía del país, sobre todo para dinamizar el consumo nacional. Estas representan cerca del 20% del PIB nacional, y se habían reducido en casi el 15% hasta enero del 2009.

GUATEMALA. En enero del 2009 se observó una reducción del 11.9% de las remesas.

Más del 80% de las remesas que llegan a Guatemala provienen de Estados Unidos.

NICARAGUA. En 2008, las remesas familia-res no descendieron con respecto a 2007, pero una desagregación trimestral muestra la progresiva desaceleración del flujo de éstas, en la medida en que las remesas del primer trimestre fueron un 22% superior a las registradas en igual período del año anterior, mientras que las correspondientes al último trimestre sólo crecieron 0,14% con respecto al mismo período de 2007. El deterioro de la situación ocupacional de los migrantes nicaragüenses en Estados Unidos y Costa Rica (principales destinos), hace prever que las remesas disminuirán durante 2009.

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6.- (REPÚBLICA DOMINICANA) La crisis puede afectar al 25% de los hogares a nivel nacional que recibe remesas, las que representan el 26% de los ingresos del hogar.

1.- (MÉXICO) Las remesas represen-tan aproximadamente el 21% de los ingresos de los hogares rurales.

2.- (NICARAGUA) La baja de las remesas puede tener un efecto severo en el 20% de la población rural que las recibe.

3.- (HONDURAS) En septiembre de 2006 el porcentaje de hogares hondureños receptores de remesas era de 15% a nivel nacional; en el área rural era de 13%. Las remesas representan el 12.5% de los ingresos de los hogares rurales.

4.- (GUATEMALA) Se esperan efectos severos en los hogares de bajos ingresos (quintiles 1 a 3)

5.- (EL SALVADOR) Las remesas representan el 12.5% de los ingresos de los hogares rurales, donde el 21.6% de estos hogares reciben remesas (casi la cuarta parte de esta población).

Las remesas en los hogares rurales

Link to website: www.rimisp.org/dtr/crisisypobrezarural

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