Inter-American Development Bank, PepsiCo and the PepsiCo Foundation expand ties for water management

The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), PepsiCo, and the PepsiCo Foundation announce the creation of the Hydro-BID Support Center in Latin America and the Caribbean. The Center will help IDB member countries plan for and manage changes in water availability by using a modelling tool, Hydro-BID, in arid and stressed areas.

This initiative will promote a regional, open, collaborative and inclusive dialogue in which all stakeholders involved in the management of water resources will contribute and innovate to achieve the sustainable management of water in the region.

Backed by a US$3 million commitment from PepsiCo Foundation, the Center will build upon the results obtained and lessons learned from the application of Hydro-BID under the auspices of the AquaFund, an IDB-managed multi-donor fund supported by PepsiCo Foundation and the Governments of Austria, Spain, and Switzerland.

Hydro-BID allows governments to manage water resources more efficiently by analyzing and predicting water availability, taking into consideration the impacts of climate change and competing end-uses of water. Because these institutions impact the resilience of their communities, Hydro-BID strengthens their institutional capacity so they may better manage this key public good.

“Our partnership with PepsiCo and the PepsiCo Foundation is a great example of the role the private sector can play in development,” said IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno. “In making the regional center possible, the PepsiCo Foundation is contributing to empower governments with the resources needed to better manage critical water resources and, as a result, to better serve their constituents.”

Laxman Narasimhan, CEO PepsiCo Latin America and Europe Sub-Saharan Africa, said: “All of PepsiCo’s global water efforts are with the ambition to support long-term water security for those who depend on water availability as well as for our food and beverage business. Now, more than ever, it is crucial to support efforts to increase access to safe water, a UN-recognized, fundamental human right. This grant builds on 7 years of PepsiCo and the PepsiCo Foundation’s water investment and innovation with IDB and we are proud to protect the human right to water throughout Latin America and the Caribbean.”

Hydro-BID was piloted in selected watersheds in Argentina, Peru and Brazil from 2014 to 2016. The creation of the Hydro-BID Support Center will expand its use and benefits to Argentina, Ecuador, and Guatemala in 2017. In coming years, the partnership intends to reach at least three more countries with the aim of benefiting approximately 725,000 people by end of 2025.

Original source: IDB
Published on 11 December 2017