Ref. Wz 455 P 85 San José, May 5, 2003 "His Excellency Mr. Roberto Tovar Faja Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of the Republic of Costa Rica San José Mr. Minister:
In compliance with the Convention on Technical Cooperation concluded between our two Governments on July 23, 1965, and the Amending Protocol of March 13, 1986, I have the honor to propose to Your Excellency, on behalf of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, the following Agreement on the project "Sustainable exploitation of natural resources in the Osa Conservation Area (ACOSA)":
1. The Government of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica shall jointly promote the sustainable exploitation of natural resources in the Osa Conservation Area (ACOSA).
2. The objective of the project is to contribute to satisfying the economic and social needs of the local population by allocating responsibilities in the field of the protection and sustainable management of natural resources to civil society organizations, the municipalities and local governments of the Osa Conservation Area, as well as to central government authorities.
3. Contributions of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany:
- a)It shall send - a long-term expert specialized in resource exploitation, for a total of up to 33 expert-months, - short-term experts for the fields of economic promotion and employment promotion, project progress certification and control, for a total of up to 8 expert-months, - if necessary, project assistants or trainees within the framework of the young expert promotion program of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), financed separately, who shall work in the project for training and further education purposes and shall perform special tasks for it; b) it shall make available at the project site - long-term experts for the fields of employment promotion, organizational development, municipal promotion, management of protected areas, and timber economy, for a total of up to 150 expert-months, - short-term experts for the fields of conflict resolution, indigenous population development, and commercialization, for a total of up to 25 expert-months; c) it shall supply material goods, in particular vehicles, agricultural and forestry equipment, didactic material, and office equipment (including personal computers and software programs), for a total value of up to EUR 260,000.00 (in words: two hundred sixty thousand euros); d) it shall bear the costs of:
- remuneration of the experts sent and of the experts and auxiliaries contracted in situ, - accommodation for the experts sent and their family members, - official travel for the experts sent and contracted in situ, within and outside the Republic of Costa Rica, - transport and insurance of the material specified in letter c, to the project implementation site, - operation and administration of the German contribution; e) it is willing to train and further educate local counterparts outside the project in fields to be agreed upon with the counterparty, budgeting for this purpose a sum of EUR 100,000.00 (in words: one hundred thousand euros).
4. Contributions of the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica:
- a)it shall make available, at its own expense, the land and buildings necessary for the implementation of the project, including their equipment, insofar as this is not supplied by the Federal Republic of Germany at its own expense; b) it shall cover the current expenses of the project, insofar as they are not borne by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 3, letter d); c) it shall endeavor to make the necessary personnel available and shall help ensure that experts and directors of the participating institutions, in particular the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), the municipalities of Osa, Corredores, and Golfito, and the National Commission for Indigenous Affairs (CONAI), as well as local non-governmental organizations, are integrated into the project activities and assume responsibilities for its execution. It shall also ensure adequate administrative support for the project by MINAE; d) it shall exempt the supplies of material, office supplies, vehicles, and other objects assigned by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany to this project from all import and export duties, and other public charges, as well as from warehousing fees and port dues, insofar as these services are provided by the State and authorization from the competent national authority is obtained, and it shall endeavor that the material passes through customs without delay as soon as the corresponding legal and administrative procedures have been completed, in accordance with the above-mentioned Convention on Technical Cooperation of July 23, 1965, and the Amending Protocol of March 13, 1986.
- e)it shall facilitate, in accordance with current national and international regulations, and according to its technical level, the recognition of the training acquired by Costa Rican officials trained and specialized within the framework of the present Agreement, ensuring their availability for the project for a minimum of three years.
- f)it shall grant the experts sent all kinds of support in carrying out the tasks entrusted to them and shall make all necessary documentation available to them.
5. The experts sent shall advise and assist their counterparts in the following tasks (referring to the Osa Conservation Area):
- a)preparation of procedures and strategies for product processing in the immediate environment of producers and for generating locally added value from the sustainable management of natural resources, with enhancing effects on income and employment for both women and men, as well as the corresponding commercialization plans, and assistance for the practical application of said procedures and strategies; b) preparation and prospective implementation of exploitation plans for state and private protected areas in collaboration with the participating entities and the affected parties; c) strengthening the capacity of relevant grassroots organizations, local governments, and central authorities for the application of instruments for consensus building and execution of plans and strategies for the sustainable development of ACOSA; d) strengthening the self-determined development capacity of indigenous communities.
6. The material goods supplied for the project on behalf of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany shall become the direct property of the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) or of other executing agencies integrated into the project. Said goods shall be entirely at the disposal of the promoted project and of the experts sent for the fulfillment of their tasks.
7. Designation of the executing agencies:
- a)The Government of the Federal Republic of Germany entrusts the execution of its contributions to the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), GmbH, based in Eschborn.
- b)The Government of the Republic of Costa Rica entrusts the execution of the project to the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), based in San José, and to its external structure in the Osa Conservation Area (ACOSA). It shall also ensure that the municipalities of Osa, Corredores, and Golfito and local non-governmental organizations adequately participate in the project.
- c)The agencies entrusted under letters a) and b) may establish or, as appropriate, shall jointly establish the details of the project's implementation in an operational plan or in another suitable manner and, if necessary, shall adapt them to the project's development.
8. In the event that the present project is not implemented or is only partially implemented, it may be replaced by another if both Governments so agree.
9. Furthermore, the provisions of the above-mentioned Convention on Technical Cooperation of July 23, 1965, and those of the Amending Protocol of March 13, 1986, shall also apply to this Agreement.
10. This Agreement is concluded in German and Spanish, both texts being equally authentic.
If the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica declares itself in agreement with the proposals contained in paragraphs 1 to 10, this Note and the reply Note of Your Excellency expressing your Government's agreement shall constitute an Agreement between our Governments, which shall enter into force on the date of your reply Note.
I avail myself of this occasion to reiterate to Your Excellency the assurance of my highest and most distinguished consideration.
Clemens Hach" No. 299-03-OAT-PE San José, May 21, 2003 "His Excellency Mr. Helmut Göckel Ambassador Federal Republic of Germany City Most Excellent Mr. Ambassador:
I have the honor to address Your Excellency to acknowledge receipt of your kind Diplomatic Note number Wz 455 P 85 of May 5, 2003, regarding the project for the "Sustainable exploitation of natural resources in the Osa Conservation Area (ACOSA)," whose text is as follows:
"In compliance with the Convention on Technical Cooperation concluded between our two Governments on July 23, 1965, and the Amending Protocol of March 13, 1986, I have the honor to propose to Your Excellency, on behalf of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany, the following Agreement on the project "Sustainable exploitation of natural resources in the Osa Conservation Area (ACOSA)":
1. The Government of the Federal Republic of Germany and the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica shall jointly promote the sustainable exploitation of natural resources in the Osa Conservation Area (ACOSA).
2. The objective of the project is to contribute to satisfying the economic and social needs of the local population by allocating responsibilities in the field of the protection and sustainable management of natural resources to civil society organizations, the municipalities and local governments of the Osa Conservation Area, as well as to central government authorities.
Contributions of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany:
- a)It shall send:
- a long-term expert specialized in resource exploitation, for a total of up to 33 expert-months, - short-term experts for the fields of economic promotion and employment promotion, project progress certification and control, for a total of up to 8 expert-months, - if necessary, project assistants or trainees within the framework of the young expert promotion program of the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), financed separately, who shall work in the project for training and further education purposes and shall perform special tasks for it; b) it shall make available at the project site:
- long-term experts for the fields of employment promotion, organizational development, municipal promotion, management of protected areas, and timber economy, for a total of up to 150 expert-months, - short-term experts for the fields of conflict resolution, indigenous population development, and commercialization, for a total of up to 25 expert-months; c) it shall supply material goods, in particular vehicles, agricultural and forestry equipment, didactic material, and office equipment (including personal computers and software programs), for a total value of up to EUR 260,000.00 (in words: two hundred sixty thousand euros); d) it shall bear the costs of:
- remuneration of the experts sent and of the experts and auxiliaries contracted in situ, - accommodation for the experts sent and their family members, - official travel for the experts sent and contracted in situ, within and outside the Republic of Costa Rica, - transport and insurance of the material specified in letter c, to the project implementation site, - operation and administration of the German contribution; e) it is willing to train and further educate local counterparts outside the project in fields to be agreed upon with the counterparty, budgeting for this purpose a sum of EUR 100,000.00 (in words: one hundred thousand euros).
4. Contributions of the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica:
- a)it shall make available, at its own expense, the land and buildings necessary for the implementation of the project, including their equipment, insofar as this is not supplied by the Federal Republic of Germany at its own expense; b) it shall cover the current expenses of the project, insofar as they are not borne by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany in accordance with the provisions of paragraph 3, letter d); c) it shall endeavor to make the necessary personnel available and shall help ensure that experts and directors of the participating institutions, in particular the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), the municipalities of Osa, Corredores, and Golfito, and the National Commission for Indigenous Affairs (CONAI), as well as local non-governmental organizations, are integrated into the project activities and assume responsibilities for its execution. It shall also ensure adequate administrative support for the project by MINAE; d) it shall exempt the supplies of material, office supplies, vehicles, and other objects assigned by the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany to this project from all import and export duties, and other public charges, as well as from warehousing fees and port dues, insofar as these services are provided by the State and authorization from the competent national authority is obtained, and it shall endeavor that the material passes through customs without delay as soon as the corresponding legal and administrative procedures have been completed, in accordance with the above-mentioned Convention on Technical Cooperation of July 23, 1965, and the Amending Protocol of March 13, 1986.
- e)it shall facilitate, in accordance with current national and international regulations, and according to its technical level, the recognition of the training acquired by Costa Rican officials trained and specialized within the framework of the present Agreement, ensuring their availability for the project for a minimum of three years.
- f)it shall grant the experts sent all kinds of support in carrying out the tasks entrusted to them and shall make all necessary documentation available to them.
5. The experts sent shall advise and assist their counterparts in the following tasks (referring to the Osa Conservation Area):
- a)preparation of procedures and strategies for product processing in the immediate environment of producers and for generating locally added value from the sustainable management of natural resources, with enhancing effects on income and employment for both women and men, as well as the corresponding commercialization plans, and assistance for the practical application of said procedures and strategies; b) preparation and prospective implementation of exploitation plans for state and private protected areas in collaboration with the participating entities and the affected parties; c) strengthening the capacity of relevant grassroots organizations, local governments, and central authorities for the application of instruments for consensus building and execution of plans and strategies for the sustainable development of ACOSA; d) strengthening the self-determined development capacity of indigenous communities.
6. The material goods supplied for the project on behalf of the Government of the Federal Republic of Germany shall become the direct property of the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE) or of other executing agencies integrated into the project. Said goods shall be entirely at the disposal of the promoted project and of the experts sent for the fulfillment of their tasks.
7. Designation of the executing agencies:
- a)The Government of the Federal Republic of Germany entrusts the execution of its contributions to the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Technische Zusammenarbeit (GTZ), GmbH, based in Eschborn.
- b)The Government of the Republic of Costa Rica entrusts the execution of the project to the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE), based in San José, and to its external structure in the Osa Conservation Area (ACOSA). It shall also ensure that the municipalities of Osa, Corredores, and Golfito and local non-governmental organizations adequately participate in the project.
- c)The agencies entrusted under letters a) and b) may establish or, as appropriate, shall jointly establish the details of the project's implementation in an operational plan or in another suitable manner and, if necessary, shall adapt them to the project's development.
8. In the event that the present project is not implemented or is only partially implemented, it may be replaced by another if both Governments so agree.
9. Furthermore, the provisions of the above-mentioned Convention on Technical Cooperation of July 23, 1965, and those of the Amending Protocol of March 13, 1986, shall also apply to this Agreement.
10. This Agreement is concluded in German and Spanish, both texts being equally authentic.
If the Government of the Republic of Costa Rica declares itself in agreement with the proposals contained in paragraphs 1 to 10, this Note and the reply Note of Your Excellency expressing your Government's agreement shall constitute an Agreement between our Governments, which shall enter into force on the date of your reply Note." In this regard, by virtue of this note, I express the agreement of the Government of Costa Rica with the transcribed text, and Your Excellency's Note, together with this reply, constitutes an Exchange of Notes that shall enter into force on the date on which the Government of Costa Rica communicates the fulfillment of internal requirements.
I avail myself of the opportunity to reiterate to Your Excellency the assurances of my high consideration and esteem.
Marco Vinicio Vargas Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship." JORGE ARTURO AGUILAR CASTILLO HEAD, ADVISORY OFFICE FOR INTERNATIONAL TREATIES DIRECTORATE GENERAL OF FOREIGN POLICY MINISTRY OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND WORSHIP CERTIFIES:
That in accordance with our archives, the ten attached photocopies, identified with the seal of this Ministry, are faithful and exact to the original text of the Agreement by exchange of notes on the project for the "Sustainable exploitation of natural resources in the Osa Conservation Area (ACOSA)," which was executed through verbal notes number Wz 455 P 85 of May 5, 2003, from the Embassy of Germany and note 299-03-OAT-PE of May 21, 2003, from the Directorate General of Foreign Policy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship (reply note). Given in the Advisory Office for Treaties, Directorate General of Foreign Policy, on the twenty-seventh day of the month of May of the year two thousand three.