President Piñera highlights the importance of PROSUR for facing the region’s future challenges

The President of Chile, Sebastián Piñera, participated in the 3rd Presidential Summit of the Forum for the Progress and Development of South America (PROSUR) this Thursday in Cartagena, Colombia. At the event, he highlighted the importance of a shared vision of cooperation and integration for addressing the region’s future challenges. 

PROSUR, which was created in 2019 under President Piñera’s leadership, has succeeded in proposing a democratic integration alternative that fully respects institutions, the rule of law, and human rights, as the basis for achieving progress and regional development. 

“The future is full of challenges, but also opportunities, where we really have to rethink the way in which we have been acting, because the post-pandemic world is going to be very different to the world before the pandemic,” the President at the forum’s plenary session. He was accompanied by Foreign Affairs Minister Andrés Allamand. 

Among the topics discussed were the development of infrastructure and technology for healthcare services; high-quality, efficient, and environmentally-friendly transport; security and the fight against organized crime; economic recovery; and the post-pandemic world.

Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, and Peru participated as full members of PROSUR. Bolivia participated as an observer country and Uruguay as an invited country. 

The forum has played an important role in coordinating regional efforts against the COVID-19 pandemic and in the current vaccination process, as well as in the post-pandemic economic recovery. 

The President of Colombia, Iván Duque, and the President of Ecuador, Guillermo Lasso, attended in person, while the President of Paraguay, Mario Abdo, participated virtually. The Prime Minister of Guyana, Mark Phillips, the Vice-President of Brazil, Hamilton Mourão, the Foreign Affairs Minister of Peru, Óscar Maúrtua, and the Foreign Affairs Minister of Suriname, Albert Ramdin, also attended in person. 

In their speeches, the leaders acknowledged President Piñera’s leadership and long-term vision in promoting integration through PROSUR. 

“We are at a fundamental moment. Some think that it’s an era of pure tragedy and adversity, while others believe that, while there may be adversities, this will also be a time of great opportunities. I believe that, in order to choose the right path, it is vital that we strengthen and promote PROSUR,” President Piñera concluded.