Argentina

The building of meaningful partnerships has enabled AFD Group to support Argentina since 2017 in its energy, ecological, social, and civic transition. AFD works in consultation with the Argentine government, especially in the sectors of urban mobility, sustainable cities, energy, and biodiversity.
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glacier in argentina
AFD and Argentina: fighting climate change and reducing social inequalities
buildings Buenos Aires Argentina

Promoting the energy transition

energy transition in Argentina

Promoting the energy transition

In 2021, Argentina strengthened its commitment to the Paris Agreement by revising its Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC): it is now striving to limit its greenhouse gas emission ceiling to 359 MtCO2e by 2030. This is an ambitious commitment for Argentina, where the energy sector is responsible for 51% of emissions. To support this far-reaching goal, AFD finances projects that accelerate the development of renewable energies.

In April 2023, AFD granted Argentina a €100 million loan to finance the first phase of its federal program on electrical power transmission, which is also benefiting from $200 million from the Inter-American Investment Bank and €100 million from the European Investment Bank. There are also plans to build 442 km of power lines and 18 transformer substations, which will inject 148 MW of green energy into the electricity grid and help to decarbonize the energy sector.

We also provided support to the local development bank and IDFC member BICE, in the form of a $50 million credit line to support renewable energy projects and develop SMEs. The technical assistance provided to BICE will enable it to better mainstream the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and to fight inequalities in the projects it finances.

Supporting the ecological transition and preserving biodiversity

Argentine landscape ecological transition and biodiversity

Supporting the ecological transition and preserving biodiversity

Argentina is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and the accelerating extinction of species. It faces many challenges, such as the depletion of water resources, coastal erosion, and how to manage extreme weather events. Argentina is also one of the countries that has lost the most forest area in the last 25 years.

AFD granted a loan of €65 million to Santa Fe Province for a preservation project targeting the biodiversity of its wetlands and of the Paraná River Valley. The project involves expanding and bolstering the management of protected areas as well as developing environmental education centers.

We also funded a study to help build a national system of indicators to monitor the country’s marine and coastal biodiversity, and we’re currently funding a study to assess the potential of peatlands in Tierra del Fuego to mitigate climate change.

But that’s not all: we’re also funding a study to support the “greening and sharing” of streets in 48 neighborhoods of Buenos Aires. This project explores new urban forms to bring a fresh approach to the links among people, nature, and the city’s infrastructure.

Improving resilience in local areas

city argentina resilience climate change

Improving resilience in local areas

Argentina is receiving AFD support to address major challenges throughout the country, especially via projects dealing with solid waste management and recovery, urban mobility, and urban development. For example, AFD is financing projects led by the cities of Buenos Aires and Cordoba to improve people’s quality of life and develop sustainable, resilient, inclusive, and smart cities.

AFD is co-financing the modernization of the Belgrano Sur suburban railway line. This $75 million loan, co-financed with the World Bank ($600 million), will improve the accessibility, safety, inclusion, and sustainability of public transportation in Greater Buenos Aires. Ridership on this line is expected to more than triple, with 9,645 passengers expected during rush hour compared to 2,600 currently. 

Since 2018, we’ve been supporting “Plan Belgrano,” a program to develop water and sanitation services. AFD financing of $70 million, along with Inter-American Development Bank financing of $200 million, seeks to improve access to public drinking water and sanitation services in the disadvantaged northern provinces.

Supporting gender equality and the political and civic transition

cross-cutting approach to gender and political and citizen transition

Supporting gender equality and the political and civic transition

AFD ensures that gender equality is mainstreamed in a cross-cutting way (via “the gender approach”) into every project, so that they contribute to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 5 on gender equality.

This is why AFD is supporting the Ministry of Women, Gender and Diversity in developing the Mapa GenerAR mapping. The purpose of this mapping is to give a visual rendition of all the province and city actions and programs working toward institutionalizing gender and diversity issues.

We’re also providing technical support to develop and implement Santa Fe Province’s gender-sensitive budget, and we’re funding studies to mainstream gender issues into provincial investment programs.

To promote the country’s political and civic transition, we’re co-financing the program to strengthen provincial management via a $50 million loan co-financed with the Inter-American Development Bank ($150 million). The program seeks to contribute to economic development in the provinces by improving the management of their public finances.

Boosting green and inclusive growth

waterfalls in Argentina

Boosting green and inclusive growth

The Euroclima+ program is helping 33 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean to implement their COP21 climate commitments. Its goal is to strengthen the climate resilience of vulnerable ecosystems and communities via actions aligned with the European Global Gateway initiative.

In Argentina, AFD Group is putting into action the following projects to fight climate change and to build resilient and sustainable urban management and energy efficiency:

  • promoting climate justice issues among indigenous and rural women; 
  • strengthened capacities for local governments in energy efficiency for buildings;
  • climate risk management in the Cordoba urban area (Argentina) and the inter-municipality of West São Paulo (Brazil);
  • updating and implementing the Cordoba Sustainable Urban Mobility Plan and supporting its development for intermediary cities;
  • development of an environmental center and closure of an open-air landfill in the city of Tornquist;
  • institutional consolidation and development of tools to access international climate funds.
326
million euros committed to projects in progress since 2017
76%
of projects also benefit the climate since 2019
72%
of projects contribute to achieving SDG 5 on gender equality

Argentina is a federal republic whose president and provincial governors are elected by direct universal suffrage for four-year terms. The country spans an area of 2.8 million km² and has a population of 46 million people (INDEC 2023). Its economy is the third-largest in Latin America. Since 2011, the economy has alternated between low growth and recessions. The Covid-19 pandemic has also aggravated economic imbalances (e.g., an overvalued exchange rate and high inflation). The country’s successive economic crises are undermining its growth objectives and the consolidation of social gains.

For Argentina, international creditors are strategic allies in helping it to carry out its energy and local/ecological transitions successfully. It’s a highly agricultural country dominated by fossil fuels (85% of the energy mix) and is particularly vulnerable to the effects of climate change and the irreparable losses of biodiversity. The country already faces challenges such as the depletion of water resources, management of extreme weather events, and coastal erosion.

Argentina is also undergoing urbanization at a high rate (around 90%) as well as strong demographic and land pressure in Buenos Aires Province. Despite the dynamism of the Cordoba and Mendoza urban areas, the country thus suffers from a spatial imbalance that poses a series of challenges: traffic and transportation congestion; pollution; insecurity; and social, economic, and spatial inequalities.


AFD is the only bilateral donor present in the country. We’re putting into action a wide range of financial instruments to support Argentina’s far-reaching goals. In addition to our sovereign lending activity to finance federal programs alongside our multilateral partners (Inter-American Development Bank, World Bank, and CAF), we provide non-sovereign loans to provinces and public entities. AFD Group mobilizes French grants to support non-sovereign projects and certain targeted activities of our partners. AFD also promotes decentralized cooperation by mobilizing the French Local Authorities Financing Facility (FICOL).

Proparco, AFD Group’s private-sector subsidiary, has been operating in Argentina since 2011, financing renewable energy development among other projects. Meanwhile, Expertise France is responsible for the implementation of projects within the European regional programs EUROClima+ and EUROSociAL+.

The AFD Buenos Aires field office is attached to the Brazil – Southern Cone Regional Office.
 

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