The Regional Meeting for Latin America and the Caribbean was held today during the 33rd Meeting of Ambassadors and Consuls of Mexico (REC 2022). The virtual meeting was chaired by Undersecretary Maximiliano Reyes, with the participation of Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard.
In his remarks, the Foreign Secretary said that the region is strategic and a priority for Mexico and one of the most important areas of its foreign policy. He noted that unity is strength and, therefore, Mexico has promoted integration.
Secretary Ebrard discussed various Mexican initiatives within Celac, citing specific cases such as the Fund for Climate Adaptation and Comprehensive Disaster Response; the Health Self-Sufficiency Plan; and the joint Mexico-Argentina initiative to establish a regional production chain with mAbxience and Liomont laboratories to fill-finish and distribute the AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine in Latin America. He said that the region's desire for its own space agency, which it has had for the last 25 years, was fulfilled last September when the constitutive agreement of the Latin American and Caribbean Space Agency (ALCE) was signed. With this, Mexico and the region enter the space race.
Mexico will continue to focus its efforts on a regional response to the most pressing issues, and is working with several countries on regulatory approval that will make it easier to acquire medicines at fair prices for the societies of Latin America. The goal is to eventually establish a single Latin American regulatory agency.
Undersecretary Maximiliano Reyes chaired the plenary session, during which he recounted the main achievements of 2021. He underscored Mexico's pro tempore presidency of Celac, where Mexico promoted a coordinated response to the pandemic. He also outlined the priorities for 2022, which include: the pro tempore presidency of the Pacific Alliance; solidarity, cooperation and humanitarian aid; promoting joint management and co-responsibility on migration issues; and contributing to the post-pandemic economic recovery.
The Director General for South America, Martín Alonso Borrego, led the day's thematic meetings. Participating in the economic promotion session were the Undersecretary of Foreign Trade (Economy Ministry), Luz María de la Mora, and representatives of the private sector: Rafael Nava, President, South America Region, Mexican Business Council for Foreign Trade (Comce), and Julio Rodríguez for the Procex Network, whose affiliated companies have a significant presence in Latin American countries.
Due to the importance of migration and security for the region, a session on these issues was held with National Migration Institute Commissioner Francisco Garduño and the Undersecretary of Public Security, Ricardo Mejía, who commented on the current situation and Mexico's strategy for addressing the challenges that arise.
The Executive Director of the Mexican Agency for International Development Cooperation (Amexcid), Laura Elena Carrillo, and the agency's director generals discussed the main aspects of their work in Latin America, the geographic area that receives the greatest amount of cooperation.
Also participating were the Chair of the Foreign Relations Committee for Latin America, Senator Beatriz Paredes, and Natalia Saltalamacchia, who gave a diagnosis of Mexico's relationship with Latin America from a legislative and academic perspective, respectively.
The day concluded with a meeting headed by the Director General of American Regional Organizations, Efraín Guadarrama, who held a discussion with the diplomatic heads in Latin America to review regional issues.
Participating in the regional meeting were 24 ambassadors and chargé d'affaires, Mexico's permanent representative to the OAS, five consuls and the commissioner of the International Boundary and Water Commission (CILA), Southern Section, who gave a diagnosis of the areas they are assigned to and their importance for Mexico.
