Washington, D.C., March 1, 2004
— The International Finance Corporation, the private sector arm of the World Bank Group, today announced Global Environment Facility approval of a $1.6 million grant for an innovative private sector initiative that aims to conserve more than 90,000 hectares of significant marine and coastal habitat in the Philippines.
Known as the Asian Conservation Company, this initiative seeks to strengthen the management of the El Nido-Taytay Marine Protected Area in northwestern Palawan island. The reserve contains extensive coral reefs, mangroves, sea grass beds, and tropical forest. It also provides habitat for numerous endangered species and supports the livelihoods of 19 local communities.
The Global Environment Facility grant funding of $1.6 million will be provided to the El Nido Foundation, which is a local not-for-profit organization that seeks to improve the quality of life for the people of El Nido while preserving the area’s natural resource base.
The El Nido Foundation will collaborate with local communities to mitigate threats to the protected area, which include illegal fishing, overfishing, and sedimentation. The project activities will include environmental education, alternative livelihood development, marine surveillance, biological monitoring, and the establishment of financial sustainability mechanisms.
The financial sustainability of this initiative will stem from the Asian Conservation Company, which is a private equity investment holding company that purchases majority stakes of Filipino companies in order to provide a financial return for its investors while generating a conservation return—increased preservation of critical ecosystems.
“By combining the skills of professional investment managers with the biodiversity-related expertise of experienced conservation NGOs, this project presents a promising approach for leveraging improved environmental performance within the private sector and demonstrating the business case for biodiversity conservation,” said Sam Keller of IFC.
The mission of IFC (
www.ifc.org
) is to promote sustainable private sector investment in developing countries helping to reduce poverty and improve people’s lives. IFC finances private sector investments in the developing world, mobilizes capital in the international financial markets, helps clients improve social and environmental sustainability, and provides technical assistance and advice to governments and businesses. From its founding in 1956 through FY03, IFC has committed more than $37 billion of its own funds and arranged $22 billion in syndications for 2,990 companies in 140 developing countries. IFC’s worldwide committed portfolio as of FY03 was $16.8 billion for its own account and $6.6 billion held for participants in loan syndications.
