LAAD shareholders are twelve leading international agribusiness and financial corporations: Bank of America, Cargill Inc., Deere and Company, DEG-German Investment and Development Company, Dole Fresh Fruit Int., LTD., Hexion Specialty Chemicals, Inc., JPMorgan, Gerber Products Co., Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company, Monsanto Co., Rabobank Curacao N.V. and Unilever. LAAD was founded to support development in the region principally through the provision of mid-term and long-term financing to small and medium agribusiness companies.

The proposed $30 million credit line would support LAAD’s main business and help provide long term finance to SMEs in the agribusiness sector in selected LAC countries.

30.0 million (USD)

Product Line	IFC Investment (million USD)
Risk Management
Guarantee
Loan	30.0
Equity

* These investment figures are indicative

LAAD is a financial intermediary with operations in Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, and administrative offices in Coral Gables, Florida at the following address:

75 Valencia Avenue suite 1050,
Coral Gables, FL 33134,
USA.

After 35 years of operations, LAAD has built a successful record of financing agribusiness SMEs and family-owned businesses, which is typically a difficult market, not always well-served by the established local financial institutions. With the financial support of IFC, LAAD will be able to continue to fulfill its mission of promoting social and economic development in Latin America and the Caribbean through financing agribusiness SME projects that create rural employment opportunities and generate exports. The IFC loan will allow LAAD to expand its financing volume and provide longer maturities when appropriate.

In FY2005, LAAD financed 124 projects for $72 million in 14 countries. LAAD estimates that these projects will generate 3,940 new full-time jobs and 6,178 seasonal ones, in addition to incremental exports of $43 million from the countries of operations. From its creation in 1969 to the end of FY2005, LAAD has supported over 1,000 projects, which have generated more than 80,000 jobs in the region and resulted in a $925 million increase in exports.

This is a category FI Type 2 project according to IFC''s environmental and social review procedure. As per these requirements, LAAD shall ensure that all subprojects be operated in compliance with the applicable environmental, health and safety (EH&S) requirements of the host country and IFC''s EH&S Guideline for Pesticide Handling and Application. LAAD must participate in environmental training as may be required by IFC to develop an environmental management system and provide an annual environmental performance report.

LAAD must also require:

- subprojects whose total cost is less than $500,000 to be consistent with IFC''s Microfinance Exclusion List,
- subprojects whose total cost is $500,000 or greater must be carried out in accordance with IFC''s safeguard policies, be consistent with IFC''s Exclusion List, and meet the host country requirements and IFC''s pesticide guideline, and
- any Category A subproject to meet the World Bank Group''s applicable environmental, health and safety guidelines. Furthermore, LAAD shall not finance Category A projects without IFC''s clearance.
Location of environmental documents In locally affected community