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Support Program for SMMEs biodiversity friendly.

The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI) is a multilateral financial institution, which mission is to promote the integration and a balanced economical and social development of the Central American countries. Under its Support Strategy to the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) framework, the CABEI has as general objective supporting the sustainable development of SMMEs and the financial system that assists them, with the purpose of contributing to the generation of employment and richness.


In line with this strategy, the CABEI has established the Support Program for biodiversity friendly SMMEs (BF-SMMES), with the purpose of stimulating the financing of SMMEs that incorporate protection and conservation of biodiversity into their businesses, products and services.

Purpose of the Program

The goal of this program is to support biodiversity friendly businesses like:

  1. Businesses that will change their production or processing system to expand the habitat for wild species and/or to reduce their damage, stimulating the growth of biodiversity, like the organic cultivation, incorporating native trees into the production system.
  2. Businesses that will stimulate the markets for goods and services produced with methods and ways as described before, like the creation of stores specialized in selling organic products.
  3. Businesses that because of their nature or location lead to the reduction of damages to biodiversity, like the sustainable rural tourism connected to protected areas.
  4. Businesses that will reduce their negative impact on biodiversity, like the fishing methods that avoid capturing marine mammals, birds and reptiles.

 

Objectives of the Program

  • To facilitate financing to SMMEs that incorporate protection and conservation of biodiversity into their businesses, products and services.
  • To expand the offer of the financial sector products to BF-SMMEs.
  • To assist and incentive SMMEs to develop BF activities and businesses.
  • To promote an enabling environment that stimulates the growth of BF-SMMEs.

Beneficiary Countries

Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua and Costa Rica.

Participating Institutions

Credits are given through Intermediary Financial Institutions (IFIs) that comply with the CABEI’s requirements of eligibility and that can be Banks, Micro-financial Institutions, Credit Financial Institutions, Cooperatives, NGO’s, among others.


Ultimate Beneficiaries

Beneficiaries could be owners of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises, as well as those people with entrepreneurial spirit who want to develop or increase their levels of productivity and competitiveness through productive biodiversity friendly activities.

Economic Activities Addressed

Production, services, Agro-Industry, Industry and Commerce among the priority productive sectors of Agroforestry, Sustainable Tourism, Organic Agriculture, Sustainable Forestry Management, certified Aquaculture, Sustainable Fishery and Sylvopastoral systems. Credits for consumption or personal use are excluded. For more information contact the CABEI Country Office.

If you want to know more about the economic activities addressed, you can also review the documents available in the Download Section of this Web Page. Go to Download Section.

What are the credit conditions that this Program offers me?

  • Destination: Working capital, Fixed Investments and Pre-investment, and reimbursable technical assistance..

  • Terms: Can be up to 10 years and vary according to the destination.

  • Grace Period: Can be up to 24 months and vary according to the destination.

  • Interest Rate: It is fixed according to the market rates and the policies of each intermediary institution.

  • Warranties: established according to the policies of each intermediary institution.

  • Form of Payment of the Credit: it will be established according to the policies of the intermediary institution and to the ultimate beneficiary.

Financing to the IFIs granted under the framework of the BF-SMMEs Support Program is done by fulfilling the following characteristics:

PARAMETERS* OF REFERENCE

SMMEs FACILITIES

DESTINATION

TERM

GRACE
PERIOD

TRANSFER OF TERM AND PERIOD OF GRACE TO THE ULTIMATE BENEFICIARY*

MICRO-ENTERPRISE
SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISE
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES
1 to 100

FINANCING AMOUNT

Up to US$10,000
Up to US$1,000,000

Pre-Investment and Reimbursable Technical Assistance

Up to 2 years
N/A

In a Micro-Enterprise, sub-loans should be as similar as possible to the reimbursement requested to CABEI.

In Small and Medium Enterprises, sub-loans shall be equal to the reimbursement requested to the CABEI.

Work Capital
Up to 3 years
Up to 6 months

Fixed Investments. Includes: Fixed Assets / Productive Housing / Commercial Premises / Mergers and Acquisitions

Up to 10 years
Up to 24 moths

* When using the resources, the accomplishment of the two parameters of reference must be observed.