PARAGUAY HOUSING GUARANTEE PROGRAM

Evaluation covers the period 6/79-5/80 and is based on review of documents, interviews with project personnel, and reports by National S&L League consultants. The project has largely achieved its purpose. BNAP has shifted its priorities drastically to LCH (at market rates of interest) and has set up a department to work with credit unions (which the project helped identify as an important link in the LCH delivery system). BNAP has also promoted two new S&L"s to develop LCH projects. To achieve the project"s purpose, BNAP and S&L"s eliminated closing costs; reduced downpayments from 20% to 10%; and reduced year-end readjustments to mortgage balances to half that charged to wealthier clients. Both BNAP and S&L"s have developed the financial and technical capacity to implement LCH projects. Only 960 of a planned 1,125 new units were financed with HG funds, although sub-program one (LCH) actually exceeded its target slightly. The greatest shortfall occurred in subprogram two (home improvements), with only 80 of 250 planned units financed. This was due to difficulty of marketing and to the lack of interest and promotion -- caused by the rise of more profitable markets -- on the part of the richer S&L"s in subprograms two and three (now being channeled through credit unions outside Asuncion). Additional LCH units financed exclusively by S&L"s, however, will bring the total number of families benefitted to 1,125. To identify still unavailable domestic sources for LCH equal to HG funds, BNAP has sought the help of the Inter-American S&L Bank. Lessons learned are that shelter programs are much more complex than building houses; that pilot programs such as this can increase host government awareness of the need for LCH; and that BNAP must rely on the S&L"s. BNAP will complete all subprograms by 12/80. The main action left is to monitor the delivery (which has been delayed) of water and sewer connections to completed units by infrastructure agencies.