EIB’s €4.5 Million Deal Backs Dominican Businesses Tackling Sargassum Crisis

Sargassum influxes have become a recurring environmental and economic challenge across the Caribbean, affecting coastal communities, tourism, fisheries and marine ecosystems.

Small businesses in the Dominican Republic could gain access to new funding to tackle the sargassum washing onto Caribbean shores, following a €4.5 million financing agreement between the European Investment Bank, through EIB Global, and Banco de Ahorro y Crédito ADOPEM. The agreement carries an EFSD+ guarantee from the European Commission and remains subject to approval by the Dominican Republic's Superintendency of Banks. For entrepreneurs facing limited borrowing options, the partnership offers a route to long-term credit for businesses handling an environmental problem that disrupts coastal life and livelihoods.

Funding opens doors for smaller coastal businesses

The financing will support sargassum-related projects run by businesses with fewer than 10 employees and small and medium-sized enterprises, particularly those collecting, transporting and safely storing the seaweed. ADOPEM, a Dominican financial institution serving entrepreneurs and smaller businesses, will channel the money to borrowers whose access to credit is often constrained. Giving these businesses access to longer-term funding can help them develop dependable services around sargassum management, creating opportunities for local income and employment in communities affected by recurring influxes.

The European Commission is providing another €1.1 million in technical assistance, supported by EIB Advisory, which will be available to ADOPEM and other Dominican financial institutions. Together, the funding and advisory support make up a Team Europe package intended to move sargassum management beyond repeated emergency clean-ups and towards a safe, sustainable and commercially viable value chain. The package connects access to money with the practical knowledge needed to prepare projects, manage risks and build businesses that can support jobs and strengthen climate resilience.

Turning a coastal burden into responsible business activity

Sargassum influxes have become a recurring environmental and economic challenge across the Caribbean, affecting coastal communities, tourism, fisheries and marine ecosystems. Business opportunities are emerging in collection, transport, environmentally responsible drying and storage, alongside selected activities that transform the collected material into useful products. Turning that potential into reliable income depends on properly managing health, safety and environmental risks, making safeguards an essential part of project development rather than an afterthought once operations begin.

The agreement was announced on the sidelines of the fourth EU-Caribbean Global Gateway Conference on Sargassum in Cancún, Mexico, and supports the Global Gateway flagship initiative "Turning the Tide: Sustainable Practices and Economic Opportunities for Sargassum Value Chain Development in the Caribbean Basin". The initiative brings together the European Union, Caribbean governments, development finance institutions, researchers and businesses to develop sustainable solutions and strengthen regional cooperation. It forms part of a broader regional ambition to collect 660,000 tonnes of sargassum by 2027, including 150,000 tonnes in the Dominican Republic, and develop practical, commercially viable uses for that biomass.

Expertise will help borrowers build financeable projects

EIB Advisory's technical assistance will help ADOPEM and prospective borrowers identify and prepare projects that can qualify for financing, develop lending solutions suited to their needs, and strengthen technical knowledge, environmental safeguards and compliance. This work will build on an EIB-commissioned value chain study financed by Luxembourg through the Financial Inclusion Fund, which was presented to Dominican institutions serving entrepreneurs and smaller businesses in June 2025. The support gives lenders and business owners a stronger basis for assessing opportunities before committing money to new activities.

EIB Vice-President Ioannis Tsakiris described the partnership as a way to combine financing, expertise and safeguards so local entrepreneurs can create viable businesses and strengthen coastal resilience. European Commissioner for International Partnerships Jozef Síkela highlighted the threat that record sargassum influxes pose to livelihoods and the opportunity to turn collected seaweed into a valuable resource. ADOPEM President Mercedes Canalda de Beras Goico said the partnership would help local businesses respond responsibly, expand their activities and create new sources of income, reflecting the bank's commitment to inclusive entrepreneurship.