CAF Strengthens Ties with Portugal and Stresses Importance of Protecting Maritime Resources

CAF—development bank of Latin America—participated today in a preparatory seminar for the Ocean Conference, organized jointly by the governments of Kenya and Portugal, which will promote innovative solutions based on science, with the aim of starting a new chapter in global action in favor of the oceans.

Within the framework of this meeting, CAF’s Corporate Vice President for Strategic Programming, Christian Asinelli, had a positive and enriching meeting with the Deputy Foreign Minister of Portugal, Francisco André, with the aim of strengthening cooperative ties between Latin America and Portugal and publicizing CAF’s strategic objectives.

“These meetings are an important means of consolidating institutional ties and for CAF to act as a bridge between the European community and Latin America,” noted Asinelli, who will visit Portugal on May 23 to strengthen ties with Portuguese authorities.

The world is at a critical juncture and is redoubling its efforts to mobilize, create and promote solutions to achieve the seventeen Sustainable Development Goals proposed by the UN for 2030. One of the main threats is that faced by oceans as a result of human activity.

The oceans cover 70% of the Earth’s surface and are home to around 80% of all life in the world, making them the largest biosphere on the planet. They generate 50% of the oxygen we need, absorb 25% of all carbon dioxide emissions and capture 90% of the additional heat generated by those emissions. Not only are they “the planet’s lungs,” but they are also the largest reservoir of carbon, a vital buffer against the impacts of climate change.

The preparatory seminar included three panels in which experts discussed scientific knowledge, research and transfer of maritime technology, the sustainable use of oceans through enforcement of international law and the management, protection, conservation and restoration of marine and coastal ecosystems.

Christian Asinelli presented the meeting’s conclusions with Juan Cabandié, Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development of Argentina; José Federico Ludovice, Portuguese Ambassador to Argentina, and Guillermo Carmona, Secretary of Malvinas, Antarctica and South Atlantic, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship.

“We are proud to be part of this meeting where we discussed one of the most significant problems of our time. It is imperative that we preserve and use the planet’s oceans, seas and marine resources sustainably in order to achieve sustainable development, and we will only manage to do this through ongoing research and observations with the right infrastructure and investments. CAF wishes to be a key stakeholder in the environmental sustainability agenda and one of our main objectives is to become the Green Bank of the region,” concluded Asinelli, who will participate in the Ocean Conference to be held in Lisbon on June 27–July 1.