CABEI awards Biodiversity-Friendly MSMEs in Costa Rica
"Small and medium producers in sectors such as sustainable tourism, coffee agroforestry, organic agriculture and sustainable forestry management received awards."
San José, Costa Rica. - The Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), through its Central American Markets for Biodiversity (CAMBio) Project, gave an awards amounting to US$28,506.44 for biodiversity-friendly small and medium enterprises in Costa Rica.
The awards were presented by the Cooperativa de Ahorro y Crédito y Servicios Múltiples Alianza de Pérez Zeledón R.L. (COOPEALIANZA), a savings and loan association that has provided credits for productive MSME sectors, such as organic agriculture, sustainable tourism, sustainable forest management and coffee agroforestry.
The Bio-Award prize established by the CAMBio Project consists of the cash reimbursement of 20% of the principal of a loan granted by an Intermediary Financial Institution (IFI). Of this amount 70% is given to the micro or small business owner, and the remaining 30% is for the IFI.
US$783,455.40 has been granted to Costa Rica to finance biodiversity-friendly MSMEs, which have promoted soil conservation by recycling green waste to produce compost, as well as by conservation of the forest canopy and water sources.
Bio-Award recipient Juan López Cartín, the owner and manager of the microenterprise, Café Boquete, said, "We see this award as an encouragement and support for the efforts we are carrying out. It demonstrates the effort and interest of COOPEALIANZA and organizations, such as CABEI, that have supported us to build our business. We have 9 years of experience as a microenterprise at a family level, and this support will provide an opportunity for us to keep expanding our company."
For his part, Yuri Zenteno Linares, CAMBio Regional Project Coordinator, declared, "We have found a strategic ally for green initiatives in COOPEALIANZA. It helps us remove financial obstacles and foster an environment for biodiversity-friendly investments. We hope that this award is an incentive for all entrepreneurs in Costa Rica who want to provide added value to their businesses by supporting biodiversity conservation."
Francisco Montoya, COOPEALIANZA’s General Manager said, "It is a great honor for COOPEALIANZA to work together with CABEI and the CAMBio Project. As the financial institution that administers the funds, we continue to promote our clients’ business development through timely and efficient access to credit, which gives them the opportunity to undertake, expand, streamline or promote their projects for the benefit of themselves, their families and communities, as well as of the country as a whole.
