Latin American Port Quality Association formed

(Caracas, April 2, 2007).– At CAF headquarters, the Latin American Port Quality Association (ALCP) was formed today following the signing by CAF President & CEO Enrique García; Pedro Coca, Autonomous Secretary of Business, Department of Business, University and Science, Generalitat of Valencia; and Valenciaport President Rafael del Moral.

García said, "CAF is participating in this Association because it is convinced that a sustainable development process depends on achieving high levels of international competitiveness, among other factors." "This is not possible if port services, vital for an adequate flow of inputs and finished products, are not of the required quality," he added.

First Class Ports for Latin America The formation of the Association emerged from the First Class Ports Program, promoted by CAF. This program was the result of institutional cooperation between the Corporation and the Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV). In this respect, a study on Logistics and Competitiveness in 2002 confirmed the importance of ports in the international trade of the Andean countries. Later, a study on the performance of 15 ports in South America found that to improve port efficiency in the region it was necessary, in addition to investment in infrastructure, to execute programs designed to improve the quality of services provided to their clients.

Based on these results, CAF initiated the First Class Ports Program, with the objective of improving port performance by introducing a quality-based management philosophy, based on the Guarantee Seal model which has been successfully applied since 1995 in the Spanish port of Valencia. For the first stage, the five busiest Andean container ports were selected: Puerto Cabello, Venezuela; Cartagena and Buenaventura, Colombia; Guayaquil, Ecuador; and El Callao in Peru.

The Latin American Port Quality Association With creation of ALCP, as a non-profit body which will act as the holder of the Guarantee Seal for all the Region, the institutional framework for the sustained operation of quality management will be in place.

The founding members of ALCP are CAF, the Guarantee Seal Foundation, the Autonomous Government of Valencia, and Valenciaport Foundation of the Valencia Port Authority.

Later, separate institutions will be set up in Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela to support operations in the five member ports, each with its own Seal Manager. In later stages, the Program will be expanded to more countries in Latin America, raising the logistical standards of the ports of the region in line with integration and sustainable development.