The permanent secretary of CEIB and general director of CEOE Internacional, Narciso Casado, closed the LATAM II Virtual Infrastructure Forum, organized by RDN Global, in which senior government officials from Mexico, Panama, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras participated. ; as well as representatives of multilateral banks, private companies and local and international investors.
During the course of the Forum, which took place from October 20 to 22, the current situation of the infrastructure sector in the Region, the continuity and potential of projects in this area in the context of the pandemic and investor interest related to infrastructure.
The Minister of Public Works and Transportation of Costa Rica, Rodolfo Méndez; his counterpart from El Salvador, Romeo Rodríguez; the Minister of Infrastructure and Public Services of Honduras, Roberto Pineda; the Vice Minister of Infrastructure of Guatemala, Roberto Erazo; the one from Costa Rica, Tomás Figueroa; that of Infrastructure and Engineering of Panama, Miguel Lorenzo; the Vice Minister of Transportation of Honduras, Germán Gustavo Rodríguez; and that of Public Works and Transportation of El Salvador, Emilio Ventura.
The executive director of ProPanamá, Carmen Gisela Vergara; the director of the Department of International Trade (DIT) of Mexico, Juliana Correa; the Trade and Investment Officer of the DIT, Luis Corral; the partner and general director of Structuralia, Andrés Serrano; the acting director of the Agency for Public-Private Partnerships (ANADIE), Erick Uribio; the commercial director of the Andean, Central American and Caribbean Region of Kapsch Trifficcom Transportation, David Niño; the technical director of the General Secretariat of the World Road Association (PIARC), Miguel Caso; the independent consultant and director of the Specialty in APPs associate researcher at Lead University, Guillermo Matamoros
The permanent secretary of CEIB and general director of CEOE Internacional, Narciso Casado, was in charge of the final presentation of the Forum in which he highlighted the important role that the infrastructure sector is called upon to play in Latin America, and more specifically in Central America. , as a lever and catalyst for the economic recovery of the Region. In this sense, he assured that all the countries of the Region face important challenges and the lack of physical and digital infrastructure is one of the main ones, since it has direct effects on productivity, competitiveness and the levels of well-being of society. . This sector is crucial, he stressed, due to its contribution to GDP; to job creation; for supporting other economic activities such as tourism; by the towing capacity of other industries; and because of its capacity to position Central America as a logistics hub and connection with third markets, among which North and South America, Europe and Asia stand out.
Ibero-American Business Council-CEIB
Casado valued the work carried out by the Council of Ibero-American Entrepreneurs-CEIB which, under the umbrella of the OIE, the only global business association that brings together more than 140 business organizations from 150 countries, works on the development of strategies and policies to long-term in the Ibero-American space (among which, of course, the promotion of infrastructures stands out), defending business interests and keeping a permanent line open with multilatin institutions and the governments of different nations.
Physical infrastructures
Narciso Casado stressed that infrastructure plays a fundamental role in promoting territorial cohesion and greater equality of opportunities in Central America. "They are, without a doubt, a dynamic element of economic growth, which contributes to improving productivity and helps to consolidate social development, by reducing poverty and fostering the middle class," he said. In fact, he stressed that there is a great need for investment in the Region to promote equity, the development of city environments, social and educational development, and institutional development.
It is crucial, in Casado's opinion, to promote a “pact for productivity”, which involves governments, not only in relation to the physical construction of infrastructures, but also in regulation, customs facilities, and in the promotion of public-private partnerships.
Throughout the Forum, the various speakers highlighted that development in Central America has been harmed by the lack of infrastructure and, precisely because of this, Casado insisted on the efforts that governments and multilateral funding agencies must make in this regard. From CEIB, he reported, it is considered a priority to promote a framework of public-private alliances that acts as a vehicle to transfer the needs of the business sector to decision makers and attract the private capital necessary to undertake the infrastructure investments that the Region demands.
"Only in a joint and united way will we be able to generate a sustainable infrastructure ecosystem over time, always mediating and using social dialogue, which is the best infrastructure a country has," Casado said. It is crucial, he continued, to modernize productive activity in favor of inclusive and sustainable growth, advancing for the good of Central America and its integration. In this line of dialogue and collaboration (public-private), he insisted, it is essential to improve legal security and the institutional quality of the organizations involved in the management of projects; financial institutions should develop and promote bankable project lines, and strengthen their role as catalysts for private investment, through guarantees and co-financing modalities; It is also necessary to provide a more fluid communication with private actors, so that companies evaluate all conditions and carry out an analysis of the economic efficiency of the project.
Digital infrastructure
With regard to the post-covid economic recovery, according to the permanent secretary of CEIB, it will not be enough only to develop the physical infrastructures in the Region, but it will be necessary to promote and enhance the digital infrastructure, since this is not an option, but absolutely necessary and is here to stay. In addition, he stressed, it facilitates opportunities for interaction, reinvention of systems, work protocols and professional relationships, and productivity improvement. "We need and want an inclusive digital transformation, access to digital technology is key to address production gaps," he argued. Nor should it be forgotten, he added, to encourage and promote entrepreneurship, education and innovation, since they are three indisputable pillars to tackle the challenge of digital transformation.
Human infrastructure
Another of the infrastructures that must be taken care of and promoted, and it is one of the most important, said Casado, is the human one, more oriented towards people, citizens and especially towards young people, who are the future of Latin America. Training, training, education and, above all, the retention of talent, are essential elements for the development and growth of the Region. For this reason, the CEIB, according to its Permanent Secretary, considers that investment in human capital is essential for societies and represents a priority for public policies. “You have to gain in professionalization and adaptability to the changing business environment and it is important that, in this training, talent is not lost along the way, but that it reverses and invests again in the Region, to face the challenges that arise ”, he declared.
Conclusions
Casado summarized the role and objectives of the Council of Ibero-American Entrepreneurs in this regard with a series of concepts that he defined as the 10 “es”: Company; State; Efficiency; Education; Equity; Effectiveness; Evaluation; Success; Excellence; and Stability. Reaching all these goals, concluded the permanent secretary of CEIB, is not a one-day job, but a work of continuity, effort and enthusiasm to materialize the commitments of the business sector and the public sector, on key issues for economic and social development Central America, which represents a challenge.
