SPAIN'S AID PROGRAM IN ANDEAN REGION

UNCLAS MADRID 001063 SIPDIS PASS TO STUART LIPPE AND KIMBER SHEARER E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: ECON EAID PREL CO ECIN PE BL VE SP EUN SUBJECT: SPAIN'S AID PROGRAM IN ANDEAN REGION REF: STATE 27676 ¶1. Econoff met March 13 with Spanish Agency for International Development (AECI) officials in the Subdirectorate General for South America to answer reftel questions. Our contacts noted that Andean countries have been priorities for Spanish Aid for several years, and that most Andean countries will continue to be recipients of Spanish aid under the New Spanish Assistance Plan for 2005-2008. Priority countries for Spanish assistance in the region are Bolivia, Ecuador and Peru for the low level of economic development and Colombia for the political violence that continues there. Venezuela will not be a Spanish official development assistance recipient in the new aid plan. ¶2. Our AECI contacts were able to provide figures for Spanish assistance in Andean countries from 2000-2003. They have not yet compiled assistance numbers for 2004 or developed individual country aid plans for 2005. The totals which include both reimbursable credits and non-reimbursable assistance for each country by year as follows. Note: negative numbers indicate years where receipts from previously granted credits outweighed new assistance. Numbers are given in the following format and int USD at an exchange rate of EUR 1=USD 1.34. COUNTRY 2000 2001 2002 2003 Bolivia 32,580,049 45,530,813 43,634,878 61,029,986 Colombia -2,317,234 35,561,308 57,911,639 17,019,797 Ecuador 16,157,265 25,570,529 89,933,222 29,146,485 Peru 26,927,375 40,714,078 47,382,536 52,591,768 Venezuela 40,913,444 17,070,285 41,160,696 42,303,997 ¶3. Our contacts noted that the U.S. seemed more interested in Colombia than the rest of the region and were interested in our description of U.S. aid programs in Colombia. They said that Spanish aid to Colombia focuses on cementing peace, human rights issues and helping vulnerable populations. They noted that our AECI project managers in Andean countries are in regular contact with USAID country directors. MANZANARES