Parita Bay, located on Panama’s Pacific coast, is a biodiversity hotspot and a crucial part of the region’s hydrological cycle. Its mangroves, swamps, lagoons, and rivers store water, regulate flows, buffer floods, and filter pollutants, helping maintain coastal water quality and sustain local ecosystems. For nearby communities, these habitats support fishing, agriculture, water security, and local livelihoods.
In recent years, the bay’s ecosystems have come under increasing pressure from land-based pollution. Agricultural intensification, excessive fertilizer use, poor soil management, and unregulated land expansion have increased runoff of nutrients and sediments into coastal waters. This disrupts the balance of water, oxygen, and nutrients, threatening fish, shrimp, migratory birds, and other organisms. For communities, a degraded bay means fewer economic opportunities and heightened social and environmental vulnerability.
To address these challenges, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), as an implementing agency of the Global Environment Facility (GEF), supported Panama’s Ministry of Environment in launching the $2.9 million project “Reducing Coastal Pollution in Parita Bay.” This initiative, part of the Clean and Healthy Ocean Integrated Program (CHO-IP), uses a source-to-sea approach that combines policy action, infrastructure investment, and nature-based solutions to reduce hypoxia and restore coastal ecosystems.
The project was developed collaboratively with public institutions and more than 80 stakeholders, including academics, NGOs, farmers, and community organizations. It focuses on four main components: establishing water quality monitoring systems and scientific research to inform policy and citizen engagement; supporting land-use planning and ecological zoning; promoting nature-positive agricultural practices with small-scale farmers; and fostering knowledge management and learning to share lessons and best practices regionally.
Together, these actions aim to restore 43 hectares of wetlands, improve management of 3,318 hectares of surrounding landscapes, and reduce the risk of hypoxia across 7,700 hectares of marine habitat. Approximately 11,000 people, half of them women, are expected to benefit from improved ecosystem services, water quality, and sustainable livelihoods.
Through this innovative project, the IDB demonstrates how local, evidence-based solutions can protect biodiversity, strengthen community resilience, and provide valuable lessons in combining government action, community engagement, and nature-based strategies to tackle environmental challenges.
