The Mesoamerican Integration and Development Project (MIDP) and its various bodies (Executive Committee; the national offices of its 10 member countries: Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Panama; the Executive Steering Committee; and the institutions of the Interagency Technical Group) present some of its most important achievements for 2015 in its nine areas of focus and at the political and institutional level.

Food and nutrition security

Mexico made its National Crusade Against Hunger international by adding Mesoamerica without Hunger to the MIDP project portfolio. The project’s aim is to improve food security in the region in collaboration with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

Energy

The use of new technologies in biofuels is a vital part of energy production in the region. Two workshops were held and a Memorandum of Understanding signed on the rational and efficient use of energy (PMUREE) to encourage an exchange of experiences and promote actions and projects in energy efficiency at the regional and national levels.

Transportation

The Mesoamerican region has a population of 226 million and 3.65 million km2 of land area, a large area in which to promote trade and exchanges. Georeferencing systems specialists from the Ministries and Departments of Public Works and Transport of Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Panama agreed on how to design the Mesoamerica Geographic Information System (GIS) that will map existing transportation routes to connect the 10 Mesoamerican countries and to make the existing regional infrastructure projects more efficient.

This year, construction was begun on the binational bridge over the Sixaola River between Costa Rica and Panama. The project was funded by the Mexican government through the Infrastructure Fund for Mesoamerican and Caribbean Countries (Yucatan Agreement).

In addition, Mexico and El Salvador announced funding for widening the road to the port of La Libertad and bridges over the La Paz river and La Hachadura in El Salvador, both on the border with Guatemala, as part of the Pacific Corridor of the International Network of Mesoamerican Highways (RICAM). Both projects will have a positive impact on trade and the transit of people throughout the Mesoamerican region and will connect towns and productive zones.

The Ministries of Public Works and Transport agreed to create an oversight committee for MIDP transport projects and they reiterated their commitment to coordinating the various information platforms and to drawing up a plan of action to develop a Mesoamerican Framework for Mobility and Logistics.

A Mesoamerican Short Distance Maritime Transport project (TMDC) was also begun as an alternative for transporting cargo and to promote greater maritime trade between the Mesoamerican countries.

Telecommunications

The Foreign Ministry and the Superintendency of Electricity and Telecommunications  (SIGET) of El Salvador officially launched a fiber optic network (Mesoamerican Information Highway – AMI), a network of 1,800 kilometers that has been installed using SIEPAC infrastructure throughout Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica and Panama to help reduce the digital divide and facilitate access to the internet. Moreover, in March 2015, the CAF-Latin American Development Bank approved a loan of US$14 million for the network.

Trade and Competitiveness

The 4th Mesoamerican Forum for SMEs was held to set the Mesoamerican SME Agenda  and agree on a short- and medium-term strategic plan to strengthen this important economic sector for the region.

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) approved loans to finance border integration projects in Costa Rica and Nicaragua for US$100 and US$55 million respectively as part of the Mesoamerican Program for Coordinated Border Management; the border crossings involved are Peñas Blancas and San Pancho-Las Tablillas, part of the RICAM. The time and cost involved in crossing the border for goods and people will be significantly reduced, enhancing the competitiveness of the countries and the region.

Environment

Drought is a regional priority. Therefore, during 2015, three new initiatives were approved to deal jointly with this serious problem: a Mesoamerican agenda on forest fires; a virtual center of excellence for monitoring and a climate service center for Mesoamerica and the Caribbean.

The Mesoamerican and Caribbean Climate Service Center developed the first two “Mesoamerican Regional Climate Outlook” forums, including the south of Mexico and Colombia, a joint effort between the Meteorological and Hydrological Services (NMHS) of the countries involved to analyze the climate in Mesoamerica and forecast high-impact climatic events in the region.

Risk Management

The Mesoamerican Integrated Risk Management Network (RMGIR) is a harmonized platform with information on regional environmental threats and vulnerabilities. Its purpose is to strengthen the capacities of national institutions for risk management and reduce the impact of natural disasters.

The intermediate stage of creating this network will be financed by New Zealand and the Mexican Agency for International Development Cooperation (AMEXCID), through the Office of the Executive Director of the Mesoamerica Project (USD 75,999).

Health

The first seven operations of the 2015 Mesoamerica Health Initiative in Belize, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and the state of Chiapas in Mexico were concluded for an additional USD23 million and USD21 million authorized by the governments for health projects that help reduce mortality rates in the poorest segments of the population. This represents 48 of the 72 initiative’s goals (66%).

At the 7th meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Mesoamerican Public Health System (SMSP), the ministers approved the master plans for dengue and chikingunya, malaria, road safety and primary health care, which will be the focus of the SMSP in the coming years.

Institutional

In 2015, the 15th Tuxtla Summit was held in Antigua, Guatemala on June 26, 2015, leadindg to new mandates such as the addition of the FAO to the Mesoamerica Project Interagency Technical Group (GTI).

Between 2008 and 2015, the Mesoamerica Project has overseen a total of 107 financial transactions with a total value of USD3,077.4 million, provided to countries through loans and grants from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), CAF-Development Bank of Latin America and the Yucatan Fund of the Mexican Agency for International Development Cooperation (AMEXCID).

About the Mesoamerica Project

The Mesoamerica Integration and Development Project is a forum for high-level political dialogue, consensus, cooperation and joint efforts to attract resources to strengthen Mesoamerican integration and development, with the aim of improving the quality of life of its 226 million inhabitants. The members are: Belize, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua and Panama.

For more information, see the AMEXCID website: http://www.amexcid.gob.mx