Venezuela and Mexico applaud the efforts of SELA for the sake of the LAC region

During the XLVII Meeting of the Latin American Council held last Tuesday, 30 November 2021 in Caracas, the representatives of the Member States of the Latin American and Caribbean Economic System (SELA) warmly welcomed the work carried out by the organization in furtherance of Latin American and Caribbean economic growth.

Félix Plasencia, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Venezuela, voiced his government support of SELA after more than 40 years highlighting the potentials of the region through an ample and notable cohesive system to boost Member States.

Plasencia also backed the action plan presented in the preliminary meeting and the election of Ambassador Clarems Endara as the Permanent Secretary of SELA for the next four years. The Venezuelan officer expressed his ministry’s willingness to work hand in hand with SELA.

“SELA is as effective and valid as ever. We have undergone different economic and social circumstances in the region, and this mechanism has been present to lead us with its analysis, debates and proposals, sharing a historical tradition from the individual to the collective, to the benefit of our peoples, within diversity and respect,” the Venezuelan foreign minister said.

Plasencia added that Venezuela, the host country of SELA, “avails itself of this occasion to reassert its full commitment to inclusive multilateralism, able to reach a consensus to fight the huge challenges we face and to share the major coincidences that make us closer.”

“For this reason, redirecting this organization is a must to attain common goals within the variety, within diversity, thus contributing to the development of all of us, a sustainable and balanced development for our States, stressing the economic for the sake of the human, and the social as the epicenter,” he said.

For his part, the representative of the Mexican Foreign Ministry noted the work carried out by his country through its representative Mauricio Vizcaíno, as the chair of the Latin American Council and the assistance for the completion of the plans and projects set in the annual congress of 2021, in a year when the region has suffered the dire consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Like Venezuela, Mexico expressed its support to the tasks and projects intended by SELA to create a better scenario for the region and highlight all the potentials of each one of its 25 Member States.

He clarified that his country expects “improvements” to turn SELA into an institution capable of meeting the needs and requirements of Member States and becoming “all that we desire to have.”

The Mexican representative seized the opportunity to congratulate Ambassador Endara for his election. Earlier, in his opening remarks at the XLVII Meeting of the Latin American Council, the new Permanent Secretary claimed to know that “much remains to be done” in the region, promising to work during his four-year term to turn the setbacks into great opportunities for the LAC region.