The experience of the Bahia Southern Lowlands Environmental Protection Area Mosaic Program for Development and Growth Integrated with Sustainability (PDCIS) – supported by Odebrecht Foundation, in partnership with the government, private initiative and civil society – is serving as a model for the social projects supported by the Odebrecht Organization companies. An example of this is the creation of the Economic and Social Development Support Program (PADES) in the Province of South Lunda in Angola.

Inspired in PDCIS, the initiative is designed to increase job, income and education opportunities in the region. “It is a dream that is about to come true,” said Cândida Narciso, Governor of South Lunda, which is formed by the municipalities of Cacolo, Dala, Muconda and Saurimo and includes some 130,000 inhabitants. “What we have to do is care for this project as if it were our own. Ensure that experiences come out of here that can be replicated all over the country,” said Narciso.

PADES resulted from a partnership between the South Lunda Government and the Catoca Mining Association – the Angolan company formed by Odebrecht Angola, Alrosa, Daumonty and Endiama, focused on the prospecting, exploration, recovery and sale of diamonds. “Catoca believes that, with the advisory it receives from the Odebrecht Foundation, it will be possible to achieve the expected results: social development sustained through the generation of jobs, improvement of the population’s income and boosting of local productivity,” said Cesar Marianetti Braga, Organization and People Director at the Catoca Mining Association.

Mauricio Medeiros, Executive Chairman of the Odebrecht Foundation, emphasized the importance of this movement and the foundation’s Spirit of Service in support of the Organization’s Entrepreneurial Leaders, who are responsible for the entire process. “We sought to consolidate an integrated model of development and growth that could be replicated in other regions,” said Medeiros. “This inspiration taken from PDCIS demonstrates how this dream of us being the franchisers of a social technology capable of promoting productive inclusion can become a reality,” he said. Clovis Faleiro, Responsible for Institutional Relations at the Odebrecht Foundation and Leader of Tribute to the Future Program, complemented: “We had the opportunity to present the logic of the Cooperative Alliance and we approved the start of work influenced by the results from the Southern Lowlands.”

Economic and Social Development
PADES was created with an educational and productive focus, promoting agricultural production (manioc and fruit cultivation) and fish farming. Some actions are already underway, such as the installation of the fish farming unit in the community of Mona-Quimbundo (75 km from Saurimo in the capital of South Lunda) – where the program was launched – and the construction of 10 tanks, which received the first fries. With the partnership between Catoca and the Odebrecht Foundation, two agriculture and fishing technicians are being trained in Brazil.

One month ago, Paulo Garcia and Mendes de Oliveira accompanied the daily activities of the Presidente Tancredo Neves Rural Producers’ Cooperatives (COOPATAN) and the Presidente Tancredo Neves Rural Family Home (CFR-PTN) – institutions associated with PDCIS that form the Manioc and Fruit Cultivation Strategic Cooperative Alliance. “We learned the process for the fast multiplication of manioc,” said Garcia. “Until then, we did not have access to this technology,” he said. Oliveira praised the partnership and celebrated: “We realized that they are not afraid to share knowledge,” he said. “This experience has been very important. I’m learning new ways of planting and maintaining different crops.”