Publication
Title
Microfinance plus for ecosystem services: a territorial perspective on Proyecto CAMBio in Nicaragua
Author
Abstract
Drawing from discussions on the panacea problem in microfinance and natural resource management, we scrutinize a green microfinance plus programme Proyecto CAMBio in a specific setting in Nicaragua, focusing in particular on its interaction with local development pathways. The programme was designed to promote biodiversity-friendly land uses through the combination of credit provision, technical assistance and conditional economic incentives. In our case study, we highlight the focus on individual producers, the implicit targeting of more established medium-sized producers, and the uncritical promotion of a particular technical model of production. The project might thereby have failed to identify and revert some negative processes of environmental degradation and did not consciously engage with the dynamics and political arenas of sustainable development. We call for a more holistic territorial perspective that is conducive to more strategic thinking about the interactive socio-technical dynamics and ensuing opportunities and constraints for different producer types and technical-commercial models. Such strategic reflection is both inevitable and political, as it impacts on the opening and closing of avenues for more or less socially inclusive and environmentally sound development pathways.
Language
English
Source (journal)
Enterprise development and microfinance. - London
Publication
London : 2015
ISSN
1755-1978
DOI
10.3362/1755-1986.2015.025
Volume/pages
26 :3 (2015) , p. 292-306
Full text (Publisher's DOI)
Full text (publisher's version - intranet only)
UAntwerpen
Faculty/Department
Research group
Publication type
Subject
Affiliation
Publications with a UAntwerp address
External links
VABB-SHW
Record
Identifier
Creation 18.11.2015
Last edited 07.10.2022
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