BNDES and the government of Rio Grande do Sul form a partnership to address extreme weather events.
An addendum to an existing contract was also signed to develop the preliminary design for the Integrated Risk and Disaster Management Center.
BNDES Agency - The National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) and the government of the State of Rio Grande do Sul signed, this Friday, February 7th, at the institution's headquarters in Rio de Janeiro (RJ), a technical cooperation agreement (ACT) to structure a medium- and long-term strategic climate resilience plan to protect the state against extreme weather events.
The Bank and the state government also signed an addendum to an existing contract to develop the preliminary design for the State Center for Integrated Risk and Disaster Management (Cegird) and the State Center for Humanitarian Logistics of the State of Rio Grande do Sul, in addition to social housing initiatives.
The signing ceremony was attended by the president of BNDES, Aloizio Mercadante, the governor of Rio Grande do Sul, Eduardo Leite, and the director of Planning and Institutional Relations of the Bank, Nelson Barbosa.
Through the ACT, BNDES will plan the RioS project (Resilience, Innovation and Works for the Future of Rio Grande do Sul), which aims to define the state's climate resilience strategy for the Guaíba River hydrographic region. The work includes conducting technical studies for climate adaptation and risk management projects.
Mercadante highlighted the need for the Brazilian state to be prepared to respond to climate emergencies and reconstruction challenges. "Under the guidance of the federal government, BNDES acted firmly in short-term responses for the economic and social recovery of the state and is now directing efforts that will make Rio Grande do Sul more resilient to extreme weather events," he noted.
“ACT marks the transition from emergency response to long-term planning, reducing future impacts. We have a major challenge ahead of us: to think about how reconstruction will be carried out with resilience and adaptation, creating an integrated center for the prevention of natural disasters. We are structuring solutions to strengthen disaster response capacity, protecting future generations against natural disasters, and ensuring housing for low-income families.”
For the governor of Rio Grande do Sul, the agreements signed this Friday represent a step forward in the partnership between the State and the Bank. "I thank the entire BNDES team, under the coordination of President Aloizio Mercadante, and everyone who worked hard, creating solutions to get the money into the hands of entrepreneurs and affected people as quickly as possible, providing technical support," he emphasized.
“The people of Rio Grande do Sul are strong and hardworking, but, given the catastrophe that has befallen us, without support, the recovery at the speed we are seeing would not have been possible. BNDES has been our partner since before the calamity; we have done many joint projects with the bank, and now in this further stage of reconstruction. We will have fundamental support, not only from consultancies but also from the monitoring of BNDES technicians, which is strategic and will make all the difference. I also want to thank President Lula, who made the federal government available to the state government on so many fronts so that we could provide answers to the people of Rio Grande do Sul.”
In 2024, the Bank made R$ 25,7 billion available for the economic and social recovery of the state affected by the floods, including 8.568 credit operations and the suspension of payments in 72 contracts.
The federal and state governments have implemented several measures to rebuild economic and social infrastructure through the New PAC (Growth Acceleration Program). Despite these emergency actions, Rio Grande do Sul still faces structural challenges in preventing future tragedies.
Social housing - BNDES was contracted by the Government of Rio Grande do Sul to structure a Real Estate Investment Fund to improve the efficiency of underutilized public properties. Under the signed contract, the Bank will redirect some of these properties to strengthen the State's Civil Defense and to support social housing initiatives.
The addendum provides for the allocation of up to 20% of the area of the Engenheiro Noé de Mello Freitas Administrative Center (CAENMF) for the implementation of the State Center for Integrated Risk and Disaster Management and the State Center for Humanitarian Logistics. In this case, BNDES will provide technical support in the preparation of the preliminary engineering and architectural design to enable the bidding process that will be conducted by the State of Rio Grande do Sul.
In the area of social housing, the addendum foresees the redirection of the use of the Othelo Rosa building, aiming at the development of housing projects for low-income families, within a Real Estate Investment Fund (REIT) that will be structured throughout 2025 by BNDES and in which RS will be the majority shareholder. The development, in the center of Porto Alegre, has 14 floors and an estimated capacity of 240 housing units, with 1 and 2 bedrooms.
