The major constraints to RNF growth,
according to a large survey of rural entrepreneurs,'
include (1) flood and natural disasters; (2) access to
electricity; (3) road conditions, (4) access to finance and
(5) transportation to markets. Bangladesh's
vulnerability to frequent floods and other natural disasters
severely hampers operations of more than a third of rural
firms. The next most important constraint to RNF growth is

Environmental degradation primarily
affects the poor, both in rural and urban areas. Reversing
the downward spiral of this degradation is essential to any
strategy for reducing poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa. This
study outlines the World Bank's strategy for improving
its assistance to SSA countries as they move toward
environmentally sustainable development (ESD). It assesses
the environmental situation and long-term trends in Africa,

The Niger Delta is one of the
world's largest wetlands and includes by far the
largest mangrove forest in Africa. Within this extremely
valuable ecosystem, oil activities are widespread - Rivers
State and Delta State produce 75 percent of Nigeria's
petroleum, which represents over 50 percent of national
government revenues. However, despite its vast oil reserves,
the region remains poor. Gross National product (GNP) per

The Red Sea and Gulf of Aden contain
some of the world's most important coastal and marine
environments and resources. In view of their environmental
uniqueness, the threats they are facing, and the need for
actions, the preparation of the Strategic Action Programme
(SAP) for the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden was initiated in
October 1995. THE SAP process, coordinated by the Regional
Organization for the Conservation of the Environment of the

This Strategy Note sets out a framework
for World Bank involvement in the environment sector in the
immediate to medium term. It elaborates upon and reinforces
the environmental objectives specified in Thailand's
Eighth National Economic and Social Development Plan
(1997-2001) and the World Bank's Country Assistance
Strategy for 1998. This report is organized in six sections.
Section 1 provides a brief introduction to the changing

Environmental degradation of coastal
areas was identified as a key issue in Ghana's
Environmental Action Plan. The central objective of the
World Bank-assisted Integrated Coastal Zone Management
(ICZM) initiative in Ghana, which commenced in 1995, was to
identify economically, socially and environmentally
appropriate interventions and projects in the coastal zone
that improve the prospects for human development. ICZM is

The law manages land for agricultural purposes, such as farmlands, plains, peasants, highlands, terraced lands, licensed forest lands, riverside lands, islands, natural grasslands(even though they are growing or left empty), lakes, ponds and dams outside the fishing areas.

Este documento es fruto del esfuerzo conjunto de la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (cepal), la Organización de las Naciones Unidas para la Alimentación y la Agricultura (fao) y el Instituto Interamericano de Cooperación para la Agricultura (iica). Su elaboración estuvo a cargo de un grupo interinstitucional  compuesto por Javier Meneses, Adrián  Rodríguez, Mônica Rodrigues y Octavio Sotomayor de la cepal; Byron Jara y Salomón Salcedo de la fao; y Joaquín Arias, Rafael Trejos y Hugo Chavarría del iica.