NICARAGUA-DENMARK, AN ASSOCIATION
Development Cooperation Strategy in Nicaragua, 2004-2009

The main objective of the Danish development policy is to promote sustainable development through oriented growth toward the reduction of poverty. The Danish cooperation pretends to help all the poorest sectors of the population of the developing countries, favouring the investments in the education and health areas, through the creation of infrastructures which will benefit the poor groups of the population and at the same time stimulate the private sector as a producer of employment and growth. Another main objective is the women’s participation in development, prioritising the promotion of human rights, democracy and environmental protection. One of its main principles is to execute an operative and efficient program support through the management of resources oriented to pursuit positive results.

Denmark has been providing support to Nicaragua since 1981 and in 1993 the country was selected as a country of program cooperation. The main objective of the Danish support until today has been “to support a fair and sustainable social economic growth through actions in sectors and geographic regions where there are high possibilities to integrate the poor population”. The Danish Cooperation has made emphasis in the following sectors: transport, agriculture, education, governance and environment besides a series of thematic programs and projects in the areas of decentralisation, human rights and democracy, and de-mining. The efforts have been concentrated in the poorest regions of Nicaragua, especially in the regions of the Atlantic coast and in the northern part of the country.

The clue aspects in which the Danish Cooperation Strategy for Nicaragua is based are:

 Sustainable Economic Growth, preferably in the poor regions, through the support to the following sectors: transport, agriculture and environment as well as the support to private sector programs.
 Human Resources Sustainable Development, through the support to the education sector and through the strengthening of the capacity in all cooperation sectors.
 Promotion of Human Rights, Democracy and Governance through the support to human rights, democracy, decentralisation and public sector reform.

Added to these aspects, there is a strengthening of the coordination of transversal issues as well as the general priorities for the support to the foundation of a capacity to concrete the Nicaraguan Strategy to Fight Poverty.