empleo

Organization: Norwegian Red Cross
Country: Honduras
Closing date: 18 Jun 2017

The Red Cross and the Red Crescent Movement is composed of 190 national societies, the International Committee of the Red Cross and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. It is the largest network of humanitarian actors in the world, with 100 million members and volunteers. The Red Cross in Norway has 130000 members and close to 30000 volunteers carrying out activities in 400 local branches

Norwegian Red Cross (NorCross) is a member of the world wide Red Cross Movement working in the fields of relief and assistance and the development of sister Red Cross societies. Norwegian Red Cross has established regional- and country representations, to ensure proximity to key partner Red Cross / Red Crescent societies as well as donors and international partners.

We are now seeking a Country Manager for Honduras and el Salvador to be based in Tegucigalpa.

The Country Manager is the overall responsible for Norwegian Red Cross supported programmes in the countries. He/she represents the organization vis-à-vis the Honduras and El Salvador Red Cross Societies, The ICRC, The IFRC, other Partner Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies working in the country, the Norwegian Embassy and international donors and organizations present in the country.
The portfolio includes Urban Violence, Protection Health, and Organizational Development. The Country Manager reports to the America Regional Representative based at the NorCross regional office in Panama City, Panama.

Main responsibilities:

-Cooperate closely with the Honduras and El Salvador Red Cross, ensuring common understanding of goals, priorities and programs. Provide guidance and support on needs analysis, programme development, quality assurance and management.

-Manage the programme portfolio, ensure that project planning, budgeting, monitoring and reporting is carried out in a timely and appropriate fashion in accordance

-Ensure proper Implementation of the NORAD, Telethon, MFA and UE projects and develop new project proposals in accordance with strategic plans, reaching 100% execution rate.

-Contribute to efficient communication and coordination with the rest of the NorCross team in the region

-Liaise with the ICRC in the country (where relevant) and contribute to the compliance of the NorCross- Telethon/MFA-ICRC tripartite agreement.

-Monitor the mutual compliance of the Partnership Agreements between NorCross and HNS, including adequate reporting.

-Provide guidance and support to the HNS on programme development, quality assurance, management and admin/finance.

-Monitor and provide analysis of political, socio-economic and humanitarian trends

-Strategic responsibility in-country: Ensure that activities are based on country plans which are consistent with Americas Framework Document and that work plans comprising donor requirements are used monthly and revised mid-year.

-Cooperation design: Ensure that all NorCross cooperation is in line with HNS priorities and consistent with NorCross strategies and common results framework. Position NorCross to formulate and lead EU-funded projects responding to unmet needs in Honduras and El Salvador in accordance with the Americas team’s EU concept note.

-Program follow up: Ensure that all new MFA funded projects are approved; count on baseline surveys and that monitoring and reports are based on tracking progress towards humanitarian outcomes.

-Technical support: Provide risk management support to Red Cross activities in Honduras and in other regional risk management interventions developed in coordination with NorCross.

-HCiD: Ensure that SRC and HRC have designed plans and implemented measures articulating its auxiliary role in improving access to health services in insecure environments with their respective Ministry of Health during 2015-16.

-FD: Ensure that Financial Development initiatives in El Salvador and Honduras are developed in conjunction with the Regional Finance Advisor.

-NS Relations: Maintain a fluent, transparent and coherent dialogue with partner NS at all levels

Qualifications and Experiences we are looking for:

-Relevant post-secondary degree in health in emergencies, primary health care or protection. Extensive and relevant field experience can compensate for the lack of a relevant university degree

-Excellent level of Spanish and English, oral and writing

-Minimum 5 years’ field experience from humanitarian work, in a relevant field

-Excellent understating of the socio-political situation in the Honduras and el Salvador and the region

-Proven experience in urban violence programs

-Proven experience in designing and management of programmes

-Proven experience in financial management of programmes

-Experience in supporting Organizational Development

-Strong analytical skills

-Experience managing EU/ECHO grants is an advantage

-Experience in working for the Red Cross /Red Crescent Movement is an advantage

Personal Competencies we are looking for:

-Self-driven, committed and determined, achieves high quality results

-Cooperates effectively and harmoniously with colleagues and/or partners from varied cultures and professional background

-Excellent communication skills

-Strong diplomatic & representation skills

S-ystematic and good planning skills

The successful candidate should be willing to travel in the region and to field sites as needed

We offer:

•A meaningful job in the world’s largest humanitarian organization

•Salary/benefits according to the Norwegian Red Cross’ salary system and relevant qualifications

•24 months’ contract (with possible extension)

•Family posting: Yes

Other :

• Driving License Class B1 is a requirement

• The position is considered an expat position

If you have any questions, please contact NorCross Regional Representative, Gonzalo Atxaerandio Gonzalo.Atxaerandio@redcross.no

How to apply:

https://candidate.hr-manager.net/ApplicationForm/SinglePageApplicationForm.aspx?cid=1212&departm…

WASHINGTON, May 19, 2017 – The World Bank Board of Directors approved a US$25 million loan yesterday. This loan is additional financing for the Rural Competitiveness Project (Comrural) to contribute to increasing productivity and competitiveness of small-scale rural producers through the implementation of business plans to improve and add value to their products as well as to directly connect them with the market. The project encourages productive partnerships based on value chains among four actors: producers’ organizations; private financial institutions to give producers access to the economic resources necessary to make investments; technical partners, who provide advice both in the field and in product marketing; and commercial partners, who guarantee the purchase of producers’ products and services without intermediaries.  “Comrural is the emblematic project of the Government of Honduras to promote agricultural competitiveness in the country and has become an integral part of the government strategy to link small-scale producers with national and international markets,” said Agriculture Minister Jacobo Paz. “Comrural is a pillar of the Seco Corridor Partnership, the program for food and nutritional security, and of Plan 20/20 to improve agriculture as a driver of sustainable jobs and economic development,” said Marco Bográn, Director of INVEST-H, the implementing agency of the project. In addition to the seven departments in the western part of the country where the project is implemented (Ocotepeque, Copán, Intibucá, Lempira, Comayagua, Santa Bárbara and La Paz), the additional financing will support activities in six new departments located in northern, central and southern Honduras (Colón, Atlántida, Cortés, Francisco Morazán, Choluteca and El Paraíso). With the additional financing, an estimated 5,500 new rural households will benefit and 70 business plans will be financed over the next three years.  “By financing Comrural, the World Bank seeks to support disadvantaged populations in improving their living conditions as a key component of efforts to escape poverty,” said Giorgio Valentini, World Bank representative in Honduras. This new project focuses on increasing the capacity for adaptation to climate change, which is crucial in Honduras given its high vulnerability to climate events, which have a direct impact on increasing poverty rates and food insecurity. The additional financing will support the promotion of better agricultural practices, as well as the incorporation of new technologies to strengthen producers’ capacity to face increasingly demanding climate conditions. The loan has a maturity period of 25 years, including a five-year grace period. Contacts: Washington: Marcela Sánchez-Bender, +1 (202) 473-5863, msanchezbender@worldbank.org Honduras: Àngels Masó, (503) 7860.8019, amaso@worldbank.org Learn more about the work of the World Bank in Latin America and the Caribbean: www.worldbank.org/lac Visit us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/worldbank Be updated via Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/BancoMundialLAC For our YouTube channel: http://www.youtube.com/BancoMundialLAC   News Release 2017/250/LAC  

IDA Credit: US $25 million Terms: Maturity = 25 years, Grace = 5 years Project ID: P158086 Project Description: The objective of this credit is to provide additional financing for the Rural Competitiveness Project (Comrural), which seeks to increase productivity and competitiveness for small-scale rural producers through the implementation of business plans to improve and add value to their products as well as to directly connect them with the market. The additional financing will support activities in six new departments located in northern, central and southern Honduras and will benefit an estimated 5,500 new rural households. Contact: Àngels Masó, (503)7860.8019, amaso@worldbank.org For more information, please visit here: http://www.bancomundial.org/es/country/honduras    

WASHINGTON, May 18, 2017 – The World Bank Group has renewed its commitment to preventing violence against women and girls, investing a minimum of $3.5 million over five years in innovations designed to prevent and respond to gender-based violence (GBV). World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim made the announcement at the Innovations to Prevent Gender-Based Violence awards ceremony during the WBG-IMF Spring Meetings. In partnership with the Sexual Violence Research Initiative, 10 teams were awarded a total of $1.1 million to support their GBV prevention and response projects and research. “We cannot stand by while so many women suffer harm that’s completely preventable, but this is also an issue that goes right to the heart of our goals to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity,” Kim said, noting that the epidemic can cost countries as much as 3.7% of gross domestic product (GDP). “The World Bank Group is committed to working tirelessly to help its client countries prevent gender-based violence.” Using the Development Marketplace Crowdsourcing Method, Kim said the WBG is looking to the award winners’ research and tested projects to help advance that goal. The winning proposals include tackling sexual harassment on college campuses and on public transportation, addressing child marriage and an emerging form of GBV: cyber violence. Cyber violence is pervasive, and women and girls are disproportionately affected, yet very little research exists on this problem especially in low and middle income countries, said award winner Pamela Lilleston, a social and behavioral scientist at the International Center for Research on Women, whose team project aims to develop a set of standards that will be tested in Uganda, and later used to inform effective cyber violence policies and programs. Technology is at the core of another winning proposal designed to reduce intimate partner violence (IPV) in Dollo Ado refugee camp in Ethiopia. The research project aims to explore the use of podcasts to disseminate information about inter-partner violence, and generate new knowledge on the use of technology-based solutions to GBV in humanitarian settings. “Podcasts we think are an interesting solution in this context because they can be broadcast in safe environments such as health facilities and so on, but they can also be downloaded there on simple mobile devices and shared person to person,” said awardee Vandana Sharma, a public health researcher based at the Harvard TC Chan School of Public Health. “We will be training men and women in the communities in digital storytelling and in podcasting, and they will develop the content themselves in the local language with messaging that’s appropriate for their contexts.” Awardee Renzo Peña, co-founder and vice president of DB Peru, a healthcare NGO, said his team’s project is in response to the concerns of the Amazon Basin community of Peru, which reports high rates of violence with no resources to address it. Recent figures show that 79% of women between 18 and 29 report experiencing sexual violence at some point in their lives. As a result, the first primary preventative strategy for GBV in the rural region of the Lower Napo River, was developed. It is also the first community mobilization project of its type in Peru, and Peña said he plans to share his research throughout the region. “We have been working for 15 years in the region, and we work very closely with the leaders in the community who will be trained so they can bring that knowledge to their own communities, and thus be able to prevent and eliminate violence in the communities themselves,” he said.  Awardee Emma Fulu, founder and director of The Equity Institute, said despite data that show that Solomon Islands has one of the highest rates of violence in the world, it is still the most under-researched regions. Her team project focuses on prevention of GBV by researching root causes and social norms that contribute to violence against women and girls by developing the Solomon Islands’ first community-led, locally developed comprehensive violence prevention program. “Because of the high rates of violence, we know we need to look at how to stop violence before it starts, trying to understand what are the root causes, what are the social norms that are really underpinning violence against women in this region,” Fulu said. “I think what’s really exciting about this particular project is that it’s filling a number of major evidence gaps, not just in the Solomon Islands or the Pacific, but really globally.” Caren Grown, World Bank Group senior director for gender, highlighted prevention as an important part of the GBV learning community facilitated by the Development Marketplace. “Of course we have learning on response and how we help and work with survivors, but the most important learning is on prevention,” she said. “Without prevention, we can’t ever solve this particular problem, so bringing people together to experiment, to test, to learn is really critical.” 2017 Winners:Sexual Harassment among Jordanian College Students: Pilot Testing a Promising Primary Prevention Intervention (Jordan, Middle East/ North Africa)Team: Information and Research Center King Hussein Foundation and Emory UniversityGender Equity Model Promoting Women’s Economic Empowerment and Fighting Gender Based Violence (Egypt, Middle East/North Africa)Team: The American University of CairoGender based Violence Prevention in the Amazon of Peru Project (Peru, Latin America)Team: University College London; and DB PeruBuilding the Evidence Base for ‘Safe Families’ – a Comprehensive Community-led model for Violence Prevention in Solomon Islands. (Solomon Islands, East Asia Pacific)Team: The Equality Institute; Oxfam Solomon Islands; Oxfam AustraliaCombatting Sexual Violence in Kyrgyzstan through Innovative Education and Information Technology (Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia)Team: American University of Central Asia (AUCA)Building Research Capacity and Data Use for Gender-Based Violence prevention and Response in Adolescents/Young Adults (Nigeria and Rwanda, Africa)Team: Together for GirlsMapping for Policy (Pakistan, South Asia)Team: The Urban Institute and Information Technology University Data Science Lab in PakistanBuilding the Evidence to Understand and Prevent Campus Sexual Assault in Swaziland (Swaziland, Africa)Team: University of Swaziland and The Regents of the University of California, San DiegoDevelopment of Standard Measures to Support Gender-Based Cyber Violence (GBCV) Prevention (Uganda, Africa)Team: International Center for Research for Women

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2017 – The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved the following project: OECS – Human Development Service Delivery Project IDA Credit: US$10.7 million Terms: Maturity = 40 years, Grace = 10 years Project ID: P154253 Project Description:  The objective of the project is to support improved quality of primary and secondary education, a more efficient social protection system and improved access to skills training. More information:  http://projects.worldbank.org/P154253?lang=en

INVITACIÓN PARA ARGENTINA   Les invitamos a participar en la presentación del estudio Latinoamérica indígena en el S. XXI, a cargo de Ede Ijjasz Vásquez, director superior de la Práctica Global de Desarrollo Social, Rural, Urbano y de Resiliencia del Banco Mundial. FECHA: 1 de junio, 2017 HORA: 14.00 LUGAR: Facultad de Medicina, UBA – Paraguay 2155, Piso 1 – BUENOS AIRES Más información en: http://flacso.org.ar/

BRASÍLIA, 22 de maio de 2017 – O Banco Mundial e o Ministério do Meio Ambiente assinaram, nesta segunda-feira, o acordo de empréstimo para a implementação do projeto Cadastro Ambiental Rural no Bioma Cerrado, que é parte integrante do Plano de Ação do Programa de Investimento Florestal do Brasil (FIP-Brasil). Entre as ações previstas pelo FIP: CAR está a promoção do Cadastro Ambiental Rural em nove Estados do Bioma Cerrado e a consolidação do Sistema Nacional de Cadastro Ambiental Rural (SICAR).  A iniciativa conta com o apoio financeiro de US$ 32.48 milhões do Banco Mundial. “O cadastro ambiental rural tem se mostrado extremamente importante para a gestão das florestas brasileiras, principalmente no Bioma Cerrado, que responde por grande parte da produção agrícola nacional, mas cujo desmatamento ilegal é significativo”, afirmou o diretor do Banco Mundial para o Brasil, Martin Raiser, durante a cerimônia com o ministro José Sarney Filho. “O Banco reforça seu compromisso com o Governo Brasileiro e, principalmente, com a agenda ambiental. Estamos realmente confiantes que a nossa persistência em concretizar esta operação trará excelentes frutos para o Brasil”. O Bioma do Cerrado abrange um quarto do território do país (2 milhões de quilômetros quadrados), representados por 11 estados da região central do Brasil. Ao longo de sua extensão, apresenta 23 tipos de vegetação, compostas por savanas tropicais, florestas e pastagens, sendo farta fonte de estoque de carbono e recursos hídricos. Cerca de 42,7 milhões de pessoas, ou 22% da população brasileira, vivem no Cerrado, ocupado em grande parte por propriedades privadas. Através da iniciativa, espera-se que os proprietários rurais familiares tenham suas reservas legais e áreas de preservação permanente registradas no cadastro ambiental rural e que adotem medidas para a recuperação de áreas degradadas deste bioma. Aprovado pelo Subcomitê da FIP em 2012, o Plano de Investimento Brasileiro (BIP, na sigla em inglês) inclui quatro projetos voltados para a melhoria da gestão ambiental e para a adoção de práticas agrícolas de baixo carbono no Bioma Cerado, O Projeto FIP: CAR tem por objetivo promover o cadastro ambiental rural de propriedades familiares em nove dos 11 estados que fazem parte do Bioma do Cerrado: Tocantins, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, Minas Gerais, Maranhão, Paraná, São Paulo e Distrito Federal. O programa permitirá a redução da pressão nas florestas remanescentes, a redução de emissões de gases de efeito estufa (GHG, na sigla em inglês) e o aumento do sequestro de carbono (CO2). Para atingir suas metas, serão promovidas as seguintes ações:Capacitação das Agências Ambientais Estaduais (SEAs, da sigla em inglês), para que possam realizar o Cadastro Ambiental Rural (CAR)Registro das propriedades rurais familiares em municípios selecionadosApoio a Recuperação de Reservas Legais e APPs de propriedades rurais familiares Este projeto é financiado pelo Fundo Estratégico do Clima (SCF), associado ao Fundo de Investimento das Florestas (FIP), e tem vencimento de 40 anos e 10 anos de carência.Para obter mais informações, visite: www.worldbank.org/brVisite-nos no Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bancomundialbrasilAtualize-se via Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/bancomundialbr Assista o nosso canal no YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/alcregion2010

WASHINGTON, 19 de mayo de 2017 – El Directorio Ejecutivo del Banco Mundial (BM) aprobó ayer un préstamo de US$25 millones de financiamiento adicional al Proyecto de Competitividad Rural (Comrural), para contribuir a incrementar la productividad y competitividad de pequeños productores rurales a través de la implementación de planes de negocio que permitan mejorar y agregar valor a sus productos, así como conectarse directamente con el mercado. El proyecto se basa en un modelo de alianzas productivas basado en cadenas de valor, entre cuatro actores: las organizaciones de productores; las instituciones financieras privadas para que los productores puedan acceder a recursos económicos necesarios para realizar inversiones; los aliados técnicos, que proveen asesoría tanto en el campo como en la comercialización de los productos y por último; los socios comerciales, que garantizan la adquisición de productos y servicios de los productores sin intermediarios. “Comrural es el proyecto emblemático del Gobierno de Honduras para promover la competitividad agrícola en el país y se ha convertido en una parte integral de la estrategia del Gobierno para vincular a los pequeños productores con los mercados nacionales e internacionales”, señaló el Ministro de Agricultura, Jacobo Paz. “Comrural es un pilar de la Alianza para el Corredor Seco, el programa para la seguridad alimentaria y nutricional y del Plan 20/20, para mejorar la agricultura como motor de la creación de empleos sostenibles y el desarrollo económico”, dijo por su parte, Marco Bográn, Director de INVEST-H, la agencia que implementará el proyecto. Además de los siete departamentos del Occidente del país donde el proyecto se implementa (Ocotepeque, Copán, Intibucá, Lempira, Comayagua, Santa Bárbara, La Paz), el financiamiento adicional va a apoyar actividades en seis nuevos departamentos situados al norte, centro y sur de Honduras (Colón, Atlántida, Cortés, Francisco Morazán, Choluteca, El Paraíso). El financiamiento adicional espera beneficiar a 5,500 hogares rurales y financiar unos 70 planes de negocios durante los próximos tres años.  “A través del financiamiento Comrural, el Banco Mundial busca apoyar a las poblaciones más desfavorecidas a mejorar sus condiciones de vida como elemento fundamental para poder escapar de la pobreza”, señaló Giorgio Valentini, representante del Banco Mundial en Honduras. Este nuevo apoyo pone especial énfasis en aumentar la capacidad de adaptación al cambio climático, un aspecto de gran importancia en Honduras debido a su alta vulnerabilidad climática, que tiene efectos directos en el aumento de los niveles de pobreza y la inseguridad alimentaria. El financiamiento adicional apoyará la promoción de mejores prácticas agrícolas, así como la incorporación de nuevas tecnologías que permitan fortalecer la capacidad de los productores para hacer frente a condiciones climáticas cada día más exigentes. El préstamo tiene un plazo de amortización de 25 años incluyendo un período de gracia de cinco años. Contactos: En Washington: Marcela Sánchez-Bender, +1-202-473-5863, msanchezbender@worldbank.org En Honduras: Àngels Masó, (503) 7860.8019, amaso@worldbank.org   Para conocer el trabajo del Banco Mundial en América Latina y el Caribe visite: www.bancomundial.org/alc Conozca más sobre el Banco Mundial sobre Honduras: www.bancomundial.org/honduras Visítenos en Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/bancomundial Manténgase informado via Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/BancoMundialLAC   Nuestro canal de YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/BancoMundialLAC Comunicado de Prensa 2017/250/LAC  

JULIANA – De 45 años de edad, madre de 4 hijos y emprendedora, Juliana sueña que sus hijos sean profesionales y que puedan ayudar a la sociedad, que sean humildes y generadores de cambio, que sean estables y le puedan dar nietos sanos. Un 46 por ciento de los dominicanos en zonas rurales viven en la pobreza, siendo las mujeres las más afectadas.     “Era muy difícil para mí como madre pobre tener dinero para mandar mis hijos al colegio o tener internet para hacer sus asignaciones. Luego de capacitarme como costurera, en el Centro de Capacitación y Producción Progresando con Solidaridad , abrí mi propio taller de costura y hoy por hoy con mis ingresos puedo darles a mis hijos una mejor educación”, dice Juliana.   Ella ha recibido acompañamiento por parte del programa de protección social, Progresando con Solidaridad, administrado por la Vicepresidencia de República Dominicana con apoyo del Banco Mundial, que busca mejorar la protección social e inserción laboral para más de 1.3 millón de dominicanos pobres. A la fecha más de 180 mil madres han adquirido habilidades técnicas además de recibir respaldo para la mejora de sus viviendas.   MARLENE- Pronto se graduará de maestra y cumplirá un anhelo que la ha motivado desde pequeña: colaborar y servir a los demás. A sus 28 años es supervisora de 10 voluntarias que motivan a más de 500 familias. “Ser voluntaria es algo que tiene que nacerte de adentro pues es una labor de amor”, cuenta Marlene.  Una buena noticia para ella es que no le faltarán pupilos: en República Dominicana, los programas de transferencias monetarias condicionadas incentivan a las madres a enviar sus hijos a la escuela.    DOÑA SIXTA – Tiene 73 años de edad, tres hijas y 5 nietos y es supervisora regional del programa PROSOLI en Boca Chica, un municipio pobre de Santo Domingo. Asegura que este tipo de trabajo le ha cambiado la vida. Dice que ha sido como ingresar a la universidad y hacer una carrera.  “En esta etapa de mi vida he podido crecer, desarrollar mis conocimientos y siento una gran satisfacción de poder compartir con los demás lo que he aprendido. Es como si hubiera vuelto a nacer”, afirma.   IRENE- Es madre y abuela de seis nietos. A sus 60 años, como voluntaria del programa orienta a 50 familias que tiene a su cargo, y se ha convertido en una consejera de confianza en temas vitales. Su deseo es que las madres se mantengan motivadas, que ahorren y ayudarse unos con otros en la familia. “En las sesiones de familia las enlaces voluntarias tratamos varios temas que ayudan a las familias a tener una salud preventiva y que haya una buena comunicación en las familias y también a que se reduzca la violencia”, dice.   Si bien estas cuatro madres pertenecen a diversas generaciones y familias, las une el solo objetivo de seguir progresando y así ayudar con el desarrollo integral de sus hijos, sus nietos y sus comunidades. Lo cual coincide con el objetivo mismo del Programa, que es proporcionar igualdad de oportunidades para todos los dominicanos, fortaleciendo las redes de protección y facilitando la inserción laboral de las personas más vulnerables, con un enfoque particular en las mujeres y los jóvenes.  

World Bank approved today a total of US$19 million for two OECS projects  WASHINGTON, May 25, 2017 – The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors approved today two important projects totaling US$19 million for the Eastern Caribbean countries of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. The US$10.7 million Human Development Service Delivery Project will support improved quality of primary and secondary education, a more efficient social protection system and improved access to skills training in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. The OECS Regional Agriculture Competitiveness Project (US$8.3 million) aims to increase market access and sales for farmers, fishers and agro-processors in both Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. The two projects will address key constraints in human development and agriculture sectors. Saint Vincent and the Grenadines has made significant human development progress yet poverty and unemployment remain high. Nearly one in two young adults are unemployed, and about 30 percent of the population lives in poverty. Approximately 26 percent of the labor force in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines and 11 percent in Grenada is in the agriculture sector, with rural population highly dependent on agriculture for incomes, employment and food security. However, many agribusiness entrepreneurs lack the skills and inputs required to scale up. “The two projects approved today aim at boosting economic opportunities in the Eastern Caribbean by improving education and social protection services for young people in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and creating new opportunities for farmers and fishers in both Grenada and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines by linking them to larger markets for their products,” said Tahseen Sayed, World Bank country director for the Caribbean. “To tackle these issues effectively particularly in small economies, it’s important to think both locally and regionally”. The Human Development Service Delivery Project will increase access to skills training to 1,500 poor and unemployed persons in Saint Vincent, as well as provide training for new principals and teachers, implement the new performance appraisal system, and improve the Technical Vocational Education and Training system.  The project will also establish a new social protection beneficiary registry, roll out a new targeting and payment system and support data collection and analysis for the first poverty assessment in ten years. The objective of the OECS Regional Agriculture Competitiveness Project is to improve linkages between the demand and supply of smallholder produce. Specifically, it will support the development of agro-business proposals and finance the implementation of business plans in areas such as modernizing farm equipment.  The project also aims to train about 140 public agricultural extension officers, improve storage facilities, increase marketing and financial literacy, and mobilize US$1 million in private capital for agribusiness in Saint Vincent and Grenada.The agriculture project is financed by a US$4.3 million International Development Association (IDA) credit for Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, a US$2.2 million IDA credit and an International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) loan of US$1.8 million for Grenada. The human development project is financed by an IDA credit of US$10.7 million. The IDA credits have a final maturity of 40 years including a grace period of 10 years and the IBRD loan has a maturity of 30 years, including a grace period of 9.5 years. —————– Learn more about the work of the World Bank in Latin America and the Caribbean: www.worldbank.org/lac Visit us on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/worldbank Follow us on Twitter: @WBCaribbean YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/worldbank  

WASHINGTON, May 25, 2017 – The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved the following project: OECS regional Agriculture Competitiveness project For Saint Vincent and the Grenadines:IDA Credit: US$4.3 millionTerms: Maturity = 40 years, Grace = 10 years For Grenada:IBRD Loan: US$1.8 millionTerms: Maturity = 30 years, Grace = 9.5 yearsIDA Credit: US$2.2 millionTerms: Maturity = 40 years, Grace = 10 years Project ID: P158958 Project Description:  The objective of the project is to increase market access and sales for selected farmers, fishers and agro-processors from Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada. More information:  http://projects.worldbank.org/P158958?lang=en

WASHINGTON, May 18, 2017 – The World Bank Group has renewed its commitment to preventing violence against women and girls, investing a minimum of $3.5 million over five years in innovations designed to prevent and respond to gender-based violence (GBV). World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim made the announcement at the Innovations to Prevent Gender-Based Violence awards ceremony during the WBG-IMF Spring Meetings. In partnership with the Sexual Violence Research Initiative, 10 teams were awarded a total of $1.1 million to support their GBV prevention and response projects and research. “We cannot stand by while so many women suffer harm that’s completely preventable, but this is also an issue that goes right to the heart of our goals to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity,” Kim said, noting that the epidemic can cost countries as much as 3.7% of gross domestic product (GDP). “The World Bank Group is committed to working tirelessly to help its client countries prevent gender-based violence.” Using the Development Marketplace Crowdsourcing Method, Kim said the WBG is looking to the award winners’ research and tested projects to help advance that goal. The winning proposals include tackling sexual harassment on college campuses and on public transportation, addressing child marriage and an emerging form of GBV: cyber violence. Cyber violence is pervasive, and women and girls are disproportionately affected, yet very little research exists on this problem especially in low and middle income countries, said award winner Pamela Lilleston, a social and behavioral scientist at the International Center for Research on Women, whose team project aims to develop a set of standards that will be tested in Uganda, and later used to inform effective cyber violence policies and programs. Technology is at the core of another winning proposal designed to reduce intimate partner violence (IPV) in Dollo Ado refugee camp in Ethiopia. The research project aims to explore the use of podcasts to disseminate information about inter-partner violence, and generate new knowledge on the use of technology-based solutions to GBV in humanitarian settings. “Podcasts we think are an interesting solution in this context because they can be broadcast in safe environments such as health facilities and so on, but they can also be downloaded there on simple mobile devices and shared person to person,” said awardee Vandana Sharma, a public health researcher based at the Harvard TC Chan School of Public Health. “We will be training men and women in the communities in digital storytelling and in podcasting, and they will develop the content themselves in the local language with messaging that’s appropriate for their contexts.” Awardee Renzo Peña, co-founder and vice president of DB Peru, a healthcare NGO, said his team’s project is in response to the concerns of the Amazon Basin community of Peru, which reports high rates of violence with no resources to address it. Recent figures show that 79% of women between 18 and 29 report experiencing sexual violence at some point in their lives. As a result, the first primary preventative strategy for GBV in the rural region of the Lower Napo River, was developed. It is also the first community mobilization project of its type in Peru, and Peña said he plans to share his research throughout the region. “We have been working for 15 years in the region, and we work very closely with the leaders in the community who will be trained so they can bring that knowledge to their own communities, and thus be able to prevent and eliminate violence in the communities themselves,” he said.  Awardee Emma Fulu, founder and director of The Equity Institute, said despite data that show that Solomon Islands has one of the highest rates of violence in the world, it is still the most under-researched regions. Her team project focuses on prevention of GBV by researching root causes and social norms that contribute to violence against women and girls by developing the Solomon Islands’ first community-led, locally developed comprehensive violence prevention program. “Because of the high rates of violence, we know we need to look at how to stop violence before it starts, trying to understand what are the root causes, what are the social norms that are really underpinning violence against women in this region,” Fulu said. “I think what’s really exciting about this particular project is that it’s filling a number of major evidence gaps, not just in the Solomon Islands or the Pacific, but really globally.” Caren Grown, World Bank Group senior director for gender, highlighted prevention as an important part of the GBV learning community facilitated by the Development Marketplace. “Of course we have learning on response and how we help and work with survivors, but the most important learning is on prevention,” she said. “Without prevention, we can’t ever solve this particular problem, so bringing people together to experiment, to test, to learn is really critical.” 2017 Winners:Sexual Harassment among Jordanian College Students: Pilot Testing a Promising Primary Prevention Intervention (Jordan, Middle East/ North Africa)Team: Information and Research Center King Hussein Foundation and Emory UniversityGender Equity Model Promoting Women’s Economic Empowerment and Fighting Gender Based Violence (Egypt, Middle East/North Africa)Team: The American University of CairoGender based Violence Prevention in the Amazon of Peru Project (Peru, Latin America)Team: University College London; and DB PeruBuilding the Evidence Base for ‘Safe Families’ – a Comprehensive Community-led model for Violence Prevention in Solomon Islands. (Solomon Islands, East Asia Pacific)Team: The Equality Institute; Oxfam Solomon Islands; Oxfam AustraliaCombatting Sexual Violence in Kyrgyzstan through Innovative Education and Information Technology (Kyrgyzstan, Central Asia)Team: American University of Central Asia (AUCA)Building Research Capacity and Data Use for Gender-Based Violence prevention and Response in Adolescents/Young Adults (Nigeria and Rwanda, Africa)Team: Together for GirlsMapping for Policy (Pakistan, South Asia)Team: The Urban Institute and Information Technology University Data Science Lab in PakistanBuilding the Evidence to Understand and Prevent Campus Sexual Assault in Swaziland (Swaziland, Africa)Team: University of Swaziland and The Regents of the University of California, San DiegoDevelopment of Standard Measures to Support Gender-Based Cyber Violence (GBCV) Prevention (Uganda, Africa)Team: International Center for Research for Women