Promoting competitive development in the logistics systems in Latin America

In the framework of the 16th edition of the Salón Internacional de la Logística y de la Manutención (SIL) (International Assembly of Logistics and Support), in Barcelona, Spain, with the support of CAF, Development Bank of Latin America, the 3rd Latin American Summit on Logistics and Transportation was held under the title, "Logistics, investments, and infrastructures in Latin America". 

CAF considers it is very important to support the competitive development of its national logistics systems including infrastructure, services, processes, information systems, management capacities, institutional frameworks, and regulation. In order to achieve this, the General Program for Regional Logistic Development in Latin America (CAF-LOGRA, for its Spanish acronym) was promoted with the objective of identifying, analyzing, promoting, and executing projects and programs in specialized logistics that contribute to promote the "National Logistics Systems" of its member countries. The purpose is to generate the capacity and knowledge of differential value that may be capitalized by agents of the public and private sector in order to improve the comprehensive management of domestic and international logistics chains, as well as the compared logistic performance of Latin America. 

Rafael Farromeque, Senior Specialist at CAF, participated in the 3rd Latin American Summit on Logistics and Transportation, where he explained how the Institution has worked closely with its member countries to establish contact with key actors in the field of logistics both in the public and private sector, to identify support opportunities and at the same time, socialize the guidelines of CAF's Regional Logistic Development Program. 

As a result of the CAF-LOGRA introduction phase, the multilateral organization is preparing the region's logistics profile; the first logistics map of Latin America, and the portfolio of priority logistics development projects and programs. All of these shall be presented in the third quarter of 2014. Furthermore, as part of the knowledge generation agenda within the Logistics Program, CAF has been carrying out a series of analyses regarding sustainable logistics, urban logistics, and global trade logistics.