Santiago, Mar. 25 (EFE) – The president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Ilan Goldfajn, said Tuesday that all 48 member countries, including the United States, are “committed to the region,” and emphasized that the 65th Annual Meeting of the Board of Governors, taking place this week in Santiago, Chile, would focus on “issues that unite us.”
“We are 48 members and we are here (in Santiago), all committed to the region, committed to issues that unite us,” said the Brazilian official at a press conference alongside Chilean Finance Minister Mario Marcel, the host of the gathering.
IDB Meeting in Santiago Highlights Regional Unity
The IDB Board of Governors—comprising finance and economy ministers and senior officials from its 48 member countries—will meet from March 28 to 30 in Santiago to address development challenges and opportunities in Latin America and the Caribbean, in collaboration with the private sector.
Running in parallel is the 39th Annual Meeting of the IDB Invest Board of Governors. IDB Invest, the private-sector arm of the IDB, is responsible for 44% of the multilateral bank’s operations in the region.
Shared Priorities and Regional Growth
In addition to plenary sessions, a series of seminars will begin on Wednesday, tackling pressing issues such as regional integration, poverty and hunger reduction, resilience to natural disasters, innovation for sustainable growth, and the importance of caregiving.
“The region has issues and themes that matter to all of us, and we have to highlight that,” Goldfajn said. “The IDB is the space where those shared priorities are transformed into concrete results.”
The IDB provides $25 billion annually in financing and resource mobilization across Latin America and the Caribbean, aiming to exceed $38 billion per year by 2030.
Santiago Hosts 65th Annual IDB Meeting
“It’s symbolic that we are all here together (in Santiago) working for the region because if we have a prosperous and growing Latin America, we will also have a secure and prosperous hemisphere,” the Inter-American Development Bank president added.
This marks the first time since 2001 that Chile is hosting the IDB Board of Governors meeting. It is expected to attract more than 3,000 participants to the capital.
Finance Minister Mario Marcel highlighted the economic benefits of the event:
“Chile gains benefits that are roughly four times the cost of hosting this event,” Marcel said, adding that the meeting helps “showcase the investment opportunities the country has to offer.” EFE