Plan de Acción para Amazonas: Integración de Servicios Ecosistémicos en la Planificación para el Desarrollo en la Amazonía Andina

The initiative aimed to integrate services ecosistémicos into regional development planning, utilizing the conceptual framework of the Economía de los Ecosistemas y la Biodiversidad (TEEB) approach. The project was coordinated by the Universidad del Pacífico del Perú and executed in the Amazonas department, as well as in Caquetá, Colombia, Napo and Sucumbíos in Ecuador, and Loreto and Madre de Dios in Perú. Initial assessments conducted in Amazonas identified soil degradation and limited market access as primary challenges. Ecosistemas acuáticos and bosques de tierra firme were prioritized, and the main services ecosistémicos were identified as the provision of peces, the regulation natural of enfermedades (dengue and malaria), and the service cultural of belleza paisajística. These services were valued using various methods, including precios de mercado and costos evitados de tratamiento de enfermedades. The valoración económica of the services ecosistémicos prioritizados revealed significant benefits, with the provision of peces estimated to generate between US$4.3 million and US$7.2 million annually, representing between 1.5% and 2.9% of the Departamento's PIB. The service of regulación natural de enfermedades was estimated to generate between US$231,000 and US$520,000 annually, representing between 1.6% and 3.9% of the Departamento's Sistema General de Participaciones de la Nación para Salud. Implementation of the plan de acción para Amazonas focused on three key interventions: the development of a propuesta de acciones e instrumentos for the incorporation of services ecosistémicos into regional development planning, the creation of a hoja de ruta for the implementation of these instruments, and the articulation of the plan with the Plan Nacional de Desarrollo 2014-2018. The propuesta de acciones e instrumentos included the development of a Estrategia Envolvente de Crecimiento Verde and the prioritization of the Región Centro Sur. The plan de acción para Amazonas was presented to the Gobernación de Amazonas and Corpoamazonía, the autoridad ambiental regional, and was analyzed in reuniones técnicas with these entities in February 2015. The plan aims to promote the conservation of services ecosistémicos and to facilitate the integration of these services into regional development planning, ultimately contributing to the sustainable development of the Amazonas department.