The RIDASICC project seeks to contribute to the reduction of loss and damage caused by disasters and the response to the climate emergency by including disaster risks and sustainable and inclusive adaptation to climate change in the life cycle of public investment projects, preserving and improving the services provided to the population.
More than thirty participants, including delegates from the countries and regional institutions and the project partners met to work on the review of the progress of the first semester of 2023, evaluate the existing challenges and agree on actions for the completion of phase I. of the RIDASICC project scheduled for December 2023.
At the opening event, the Director of ECLAC’s Subregional Headquarters in Mexico, Hugo Beteta, addressed a few words, who highlighted the importance of the CTR for the success of the project by bringing together the project coordination, partners, technicians and delegates of the countries to ensure “not only the direction, but the speed and the commitment of all and all in this initiative”. He also introduced María Castro, Deputy Director of ECLAC, who joined the IX session of the Technical Committee. The same, she greeted those present and expressed her enthusiasm to see the evolution and results of the project that has strengthened many integration institutions.
The Executive Secretary of COSEFIN, Alfredo Flores, who stressed that the meeting is an important meeting that allows updating the progress of the project jointly, evaluating challenges and agreeing on actions for the closure of the first phase of the RIDASICC project.
The COSUDE Program Officer, Humberto Castillo, also made interventions, who reflected on the continuity of the project in a second phase and expressed: “… we know that the products, tools and instruments that are being developed are relevant and important for the continuity of the work carried out by the National Public Investment Systems in each country in order to integrate climate change issues and the disaster risk approach in public investment”; and the Coordinator of the project for ECLAC and Head of the UDACC of ECLAC, Julie Lennox, who welcomed the participants.
During the first day of the meeting, the delegates of the region shared the achievements and advances made in the first half of 2023 in the Guides and tools-training and piloting components with projects; GIS and data-climate scenarios and Exchanges-dissemination and governance of the project.
The second day began with a space for reflection on public investment opportunities in the Central American context, in which Alfredo Flores highlighted that “…in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous macroeconomic environment, it is not about investing more, but about investing better and protect, as far as possible, public investment, which is the instrument of the State to shape the market in synergy with the private sector”.
Late in the morning, within the framework of the review of priorities and next steps for 2023, the schedule of specific actions per country was discussed in terms of strengthening guides, courses on economic, social and ecological evaluation, project piloting and the installation of the geographic information systems modules that have been developed as part of the project.
In the final session of the meeting, the RIDASICC phase II proposal was presented, as well as the plans for the mobilization of financial resources. The partners recognized the great work and support given to their countries in the first phase and the value of implementing a second phase to consolidate the achievements and add to the public health sector.
The completion of the RIDASICC project is projected for December 2023; however, given the interest generated by the results obtained in the first phase, the COSEFIN countries and ECLAC are working on a proposal for phase II, which would continue for three more years.
About RIDASICC
ECLAC and the Executive Secretariat of the Council of Treasury or Finance Ministers of Central America, Panama and the Dominican Republic (SECOSEFIN) with the close participation of the seven Treasury or Finance Ministries and three Planning Ministries or Secretariats responsible for the National Investment Systems Public (SNIP) of the member countries of COSEFIN/SICA implement the RIDASICC project with financing from COSUDE.
Focused on capacity building, RIDASICC has interconnected training components with a “learning-by-doing” approach, strengthening of methodological guides, generation of tools, pilot projects and strengthening of geographic information systems required for the formulation and evaluation of investment projects. public.
The project combines actions at the national level focused on strengthening the capacities of the SNIPs, including dependencies and entities of the prioritized sectors and specialized institutions, with actions at the regional level to strengthen the capacities of SICA instances, including COSEFIN, the Sectoral Council of Ministers of Transportation of Central America of the Secretariat for Central American Economic Integration (COMITRAN/SIECA), the Coordination Center for the Prevention of Disasters in Central America and the Dominican Republic (CEPREDENAC), the Regional Committee for Hydraulic Resources (CRRH) and the Secretariat General of SICA.
