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Progress in Latin American Integration To Be Discussed in Caracas

Caracas, 11 Sep (Prensa Latina) On a call the Latin American and Caribbean Economic System (SELA in Spanish), regional experts will gather this week in Venezuela to examine Latin America and the Caribbean´s economic dynamics and its connection to advances in integration.

The two-day meeting to be held on September 15-16 is aimed at exploring proposals and coordination mechanisms.

SELA was created in 1975 to promote a consultation and coordination system in order to fix positions and lay out common strategies of the region in economic issues before negotiations with other countries, groups of nations or international fora. The system groups representatives of 28 Latin American and Caribbean states.

SELA was also created to boost cooperation and integration schemes among its members.

The permanent Secretariat of SELA based in Caracas issued a press release indicating that the meeting seeks to design a medium and long-term program to economically unite the nations of the region.

Next week´s meeting also intends to examine a strategic convergence program for Latin America and the Caribbean in the fiscal and monetary fields, in a propitious situation as the whole region is yearning for integration schemes that take their interests into account, like the Bolivarian Alternative for the Americas (ALBA).

As opposed to the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) fostered by the United States, which could only lead to loss of sovereignty and control over these nations´ natural wealth, ALBA offers cooperation and trade with preferential formulas to benefit the less developed nations.

An example of integration new-style is the creation of Petrocaribe, promoted by Venezuela, which is bound to alleviate the energy bill of 13 participating nations in the area, while supporting development projects with part of the money otherwise spent in paying for increasingly expensive oil imports.

Regarding international trade, last June, SELA experts gathered in Caracas raised concerns about the little progress made regarding the needs of developing members of the World Trade Organization (WTO), even though ongoing negotiations have been dubbed "the development round".

The agricultural issue, center of present negotiations, is crucial for the global objectives of developing countries, particularly for the nations of Latin America and the Caribbean, and for the establishment of balanced rules within the context of the WTO.

To this end, the region must stand together as one and insist on the need for developed nations to eliminate their subsidies to exporters and products, in order to achieve fair competition in the world market.

Representatives of the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the General Treaty of Central American Economic Integration (SIECA), the Andean Community of Nations (CAN) and the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), as well as experts of the Latin American Integration Association (ALADI), the Andean Development Corporation (CAF), besides SELA´s Permanent Secretary, Roberto Guarnieri, will attend the next week´s gathering.