CAF allocates resources for infrastructure development among Pacific Alliance countries

The Pacific Alliance is one of the world’s most important integration platforms, allowing countries to negotiate bilateral agreements outside the block and providing an innovative approach to promote active engagement of the private sector, in addition to raising competitiveness among the region’s countries by sharing knowledge and best international practices.

CAF-development bank of Latin America- will support the Pacific Alliance across several different strategic points. The first – and perhaps one of the most notable – is contributing to the infrastructure fund proposed by the Alliance’s members, which will streamline infrastructure investments across all four countries and allow them to tap into the full potential of the benefits created by this integration platform. In this context, CAF will offer its extensive expertise on the subject and, in particular, a new proposal to articulate the region’s structural integration by developing productivity logistics corridors.

CAF’s contribution also encompasses institutional management, helping build an institutional framework that meets PA’s growing coordination demands. The group also needs help steering extra-block cooperation, outlining a methodology to assess, prioritize, and channel resources offered by the nearly 53 observer countries.

In one of his speeches at the Summit’s forums, CAF’s Secretary General, Víctor Rico, stated that “CAF is highly committed in helping the Pacific Alliance and its member states.” Rico added: “I believe that, considering the current scenario where the actual benefits of globalization are questioned, the Alliance is innovative and flexible enough to play a key role in harmonizing different forms of cooperation, complementarity, and coordination.”

CAF’s participation in the Alliance focuses on promoting integration as a driver of economic growth and improving well-being across the region. It is a pragmatic approach to the region’s current needs, integrating several different players and interventions to eliminate bottlenecks and improve cooperation between the countries, ultimately developing production and value chains.

The Alliance is extremely important to strengthen Latin America’s presence in global markets, considering that the block accounts for approximately 40% of the gross domestic product (GDP), 57% of trade, and 38% of direct foreign investments across Latin America and the Caribbean. Therefore, one of CAF’s goals is to act as facilitator amidst this integration trend that seems to be gaining momentum around the world, such as in Ecuador and South Korea.