• SUSTAINABLE INFRASTRUCTURE
  • ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT AND EMPLOYMENT 
  • ENVIRONMENT AND CLIMATE CHANGE
  • GOVERNANCE AND DEMOCRACY
  • SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT 

Chile

GIZ local staff

National employees: 52
International employees: 7

(as at: 31.12.2022)  

At present, GIZ has over 50 staff working in the country, including seconded and national personnel and integrated experts. Due to its sustained economic growth and political stability, Chile is regarded as a role model among the Latin American countries, and in 2010, it became the first South American country to join the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). However, the country still faces structural issues with regard to its economy, society and the environment. These challenges include high levels of greenhouse gas emissions from conventional power stations, insufficient energy efficiency and a shortage of skilled workers.

GIZ works on the following priority areas in Chile:

  • Renewable energies: with economic growth, Chile’s power consumption has also risen sharply, almost quadrupling since the late 1990s. The expansion of conventional power stations and increasing consumption of fossil fuels have produced significantly higher greenhouse gas emissions. By contrast, the country has made climate commitments and set itself some ambitious targets to reduce greenhouse gases. GIZ is therefore supporting the Chilean Government on behalf of the German Government with various renewable energy and energy efficiency programmes.
  • Sustainable economic development and vocational training: since 1980, the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) have been working together to promote environmentally sustainable economic development and social cohesion in the region. In 2003, the partners stepped up their efforts further in the form of multi-year cooperation programmes. In 2017, a new programme was launched to help implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Latin America and the Caribbean. The programme helps countries in the region to incorporate the 2030 Agenda goals into their national strategies and development plans. It also organises high-profile political dialogue events between Latin America and the Caribbean on the one hand and Germany and the European Union on the other. Vocational training in Chile needs to be improved. In order to counteract the growing shortage of skilled workers, integrated experts are advising and helping Chilean institutions with dual training.
  • One of Chile’s most important economic sectors is mining, which accounts for more than 50 per cent of its exports. GIZ is promoting economic, social and environmentally sustainable development and advising ministers in the region on sustainability-related issues. This also includes international discussions relevant to mining.
  • Environment and climate: GIZ is involved in various areas in Chile, including sustainable urban development and disaster risk management, and it is also encouraging Chile’s involvement in international dialogues, in particular on environmental and climate policy. What is more, an integrated expert has been working on adaptation to climate change at the Chilean Ministry for the Environment.
  • Triangular cooperation: GIZ is also supporting Chile’s cooperation with other Latin American countries, such as Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Guatemala, Honduras and Paraguay. As an emerging economy, Chile is playing an active role on issues such as youth unemployment, housing and food security; together with Germany – traditionally a donor country – it is supporting a ‘third’ developing country as part of various projects, allowing it to share its experience and expertise with other countries in the region.
     

Additional information

Projects and Programmes

Additional information

Our References

Bright prospects for clean energy

Our Feature Projects

Ready for change: Chile is on course for a future with renewables

akzente-Interview

José Ignacio Escobar from the Chilean Association for Renewable Energy is hoping for a complete transition to green energy

GIZ-Magazin akzente

Revolution in the desert