XI Summit of the Pacific Alliance takes place in Chile

With the attendance of the presidents of Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, the XI Summit of the Pacific Alliance will be held from June 28 to July 1, in the city of Puerto Varas, in southern Chile. The progress and prospects of this important integrative mechanism, as well as the challenges to promote the economic and social competitiveness of its member countries will be analyzed during this meeting, which will also be attended by delegates from the 49 observer countries.

Work will begin on June 28 with the meeting of the High Level Group (GAN), formed by the vice-ministers of Foreign Trade and Foreign Affairs of the four countries. The GAN is responsible for overseeing the progress of the technical groups, evaluating areas of opportunity and preparing proposals for projection and outreach to other countries and international organizations.

The Ministerial Meeting of the Pacific Alliance with the Observer Countries will take place the following day, which will be the starting point for the new work plan with those states. This event will seek to channel the collaboration programs and activities of the Pacific Alliance’s future projection through four panels that will focus on priority areas such as SMEs, Education, Science, Technology and Innovation and Trade Facilitation.

On June 30 the Ministers of Foreign Trade and Foreign Affairs will meet in order to make decisions regarding the development of the objectives and the specific actions provided in the Framework Agreement – the Alliance’s incorporation agreement – and in presidential statements.

 At the same time, the Business Summit of the Pacific Alliance will take place, in which more than five hundred business people from Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru will participate, attended by the leaders of the four countries, the presidents of Argentina and Costa Rica and more than 20 representatives from the Business Council of the Pacific Alliance. At the meeting, the vision of economic and financial integration, as well as innovation and the entrepreneurial role in the leadership of the Pacific Alliance will be analyzed, among other topics.

 The main date will be July 1, when Heads of State Michelle Bachelet of Chile, Juan Manuel Santos of Colombia, Enrique Peña Nieto of Mexico and Ollanta Humala of Peru, will meet to set new mandates that will guide the future of the Alliance . On this date, Peru will hand over the pro tempore Presidency to Chile, which will be in charge of leading the implementation of the mandates.

 The accession of 49 Observer Countries with which substantial work plans are being developed under a new cooperation scheme is a reflection of the deep interest that exists around the world for this integration mechanism. The Summit will also be attended by representatives of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the European Union (EU), and international organizations that have been supporting the Alliance’s integration projects.

Five years after its creation on April 28, 2011, the Pacific Alliance is a solid mechanism that as a whole is the world’s eighth-largest economy, formed by countries with an outstanding economic performance in the region.

 Its pillars are the free movement of goods, services, capital and people on a main axis of cooperation.