Dams, Development, and the Environment in Latin America and the Caribbean: Some Experiences of the Inter-American Development Bank

This paper begins with a summary of the Bank's involvement with large infrastructure projects, including dams, since the 1960s. In the energy sector, the IDB has provided financing for the construction of a large number of hydroelectric projects. A large proportion of IDB's financing for dam-related projects has gone to energy generation and irrigation, with a relative priority given to energy generation. This paper presents the Bank experience with environmental management issues, and the highly controversial social issue of involuntary resettlement. It continues by summarizing the emerging experience of the IDB with private sector financing for dam-related investments, and finalizes with a brief discussion of some of the more challenging issues now facing institutions like IDB, with this type of involvement.