Living in Peru : your everyday companion

Refuge of life

 

The Mejia Lakes National Sanctuary and Irrigation Iberia, in Arequipa, receive enthusiastic support and technical assistance from the government of Holland.

This article examines natural resource conservation and environmental protection activities funded by the Dutch Embassy in Peru. Our interest is to educate people and institutions so that we can cooperate on improving the quality of life and the quality of place where we live.

The predominant methods of production and patterns of consumption are in no way sustainable. Every day the conflict between economic progress and environmental protection seems to grow more acute. We are destroying the natural environment, using it as if it were an inexhaustible resource, in spite of scientific evidence proving the irreparable damage we are causing. Spreading the word regarding the importance of the environment and the country's resources is a to humanize the processes of development and growth. As the processes of globalization continue, international concern over the environment, cultural diversity and civil society has grown steadily.

The main objective of Holland's policy of cooperation in development is to aid in the fight against poverty. To invest in people means to raise their productive capacities, to improve their ability to meet their basic needs and to help them play a more participatory role in political decision-making.

Starting this year, the Dutch Ministry of Development Cooperation has decided to reorient its assistance strategy, as well as the focus of its cooperation policies and activities. In the case of Peru, the cooperation program will concentrate on environmental protection over the next few years, while current projects and other commitments run their course. The central objective of the Embassy's environmental program is to promote the conservation and sustainable use of the country's natural resources. The specific objectives of the program will be directed toward forest conservation, support for the management of protected areas, the promotion of renewable energy, respect for the identity and territory of the indigenous communities and, finally, capacity-building for Peruvian institutions working on environmental issues.

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