Nicaraguan Developments, Spring 2007, Volume 23, No. 1

By Carlos Arenas

It is not only self-evident, but very well known that there is a huge housing deficit in Nicaragua1. Exactly how big is that deficit? Unfortunately, that is not a simple question, considering that another challenge of the housing deficit is the lack of reliable studies on housing conditions in Nicaragua.

A widespread calculation of the housing deficit in Nicaragua estimated those numbers in between 400,000 and 500,000 units. Those numbers are quoted extensively, but in the end it is not clear who made that calculation in the first place, and how. The release of the data of the 2005 Census, in October of 2006, is a good opportunity to try to make a more reliable calculation, or at least to start a discussion on how the housing deficit could be calculated. Measuring the housing deficit in Nicaragua is not an academic curiosity, but a fundamental issue that is closely related to social policy issues.

WCCN’s latest study tour coincided with Daniel Ortega’s inauguration in January. It was an interesting opportunity to see and hear first hand about the hopes, expectations and fears that Nicaraguans have regarding the new administration.

I believe that the return of Daniel Ortega as the president of Nicaragua in many ways represents the end of one political and economic era, and the beginning of another. However, it is still unclear in what direction the new era will be heading. Ortega’s return to power is the end of a political and economic era that started with the electoral defeat of the Sandinista political project in 1990. Despite profound differences in styles and levels of honesty, the preceding governments of Violeta Barrios Chamorro, Arnoldo Alemán and Enrique Bolaños also had commonalities. All actively supported and implemented market reforms and neo-liberal economic and social policies.

By Susan Frisbie

Throughout Daniel Ortega’s bid to regain the Nicaraguan presidency, he mended relationships with former foes, burned bridges within the Nicaraguan Left, changed his revolutionary rhetoric to that of peace and reconciliation, all the while courting foreign investors from the North while allying himself with Washington’s formidable opponent in the South. The somewhat schizophrenic manner with which he made partnerships left many Nicaraguans and global onlookers wondering what to expect from an Ortega presidency.

By Brenda Pfahl

On January 10th, the fourth day of this year’s economic development study tour, participants in the WCCN study tour had the privilege to travel to Quilalí to visit one of the NICA Fund partner agencies, the April 20th Cooperative. Quilalí is 263 kilo-meters (about 165 miles) from Managua in the northern department of Nueva Segovia. It is an area of the country where Augusto Cesar Sandino himself helped to organize Cooperatives in the 1920s, and an area of the country deeply impacted by the Contra War during the Sandinista revolution. Traveling by bus to Quilalí from Managua takes about seven hours. Much of the trip is on unpaved roads which wind upward into the mountains. The journey was breathtaking and well worth the long, hot ride.

Tell us a little about yourself.

My name is Rosa Estela Rodriguez Herrera, I’m originally from Quilalí, and I am an agricultural engineer.

How long have you been working with the Cooperative and when did you become involved?

I officially celebrated my first year on February 15th but have been involved with the Cooperative for some time now, given that my mother was a founding associate and member of the Cooperative’s administrative council since its inception. Accompanying my mother to Cooperative meetings and activities helped me to understand how the Cooperative works, and also to really come to love this project which my mother was part of. When I had the chance to apply for the post, I did. I was very confident of my abilities, more than anything I am a woman with clear goals and it was always a dream of mine to start working with the Cooperative, not just for my family, but also for the prestige that the Cooperative has.

María Mercedes Díaz
Baker

About three kilometers outside of Quilalí, María Mercedes Díaz is stoking the coals of her baker’s oven. Every morning at three a.m., she sets to work in preparing, baking and supplying assorted baked goods, including breads, pastries, and rosquillas. By ten a.m., her goods have been shipped down the dirt road to loyal shops and customers in Quilalí.