Leaders From 10 Countries To Attend the CELAC Summit in Honduras

Honduran President Xiomara Castro confirmed that 11 countries will be represented at the highest level at the 9th Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), which will be held on April 9 in Tegucigalpa.

Latin American leaders expected to attend the CELAC summit include Claudia Sheinbaum (Mexico), Bernardo Arevalo (Guatemala), Lula da Silva (Brazil), Gustavo Petro (Colombia), Ralph Gonsalves (Saint Vincent & the Grenadines), Luis Arce (Bolivia), Yamandu Orsi (Uruguay), Mark Anthony Phillips (Guyana), Miguel Diaz-Canel (Cuba), and Leslie Voltaire (Haiti).

Honduran Foreign Minister Eduardo Reina indicated that on April 6 and 7, there will be meetings of national coordinators who will work on the technical aspects of the summit’s draft declaration. On April 8, a meeting of foreign ministers will be held in preparation for the summit.

The CELAC summit will address topics such as migration, food security, trade, investment, financing by international organizations, the situation of women, agriculture, international cooperation, natural disasters, and climate change.

For the past year, Xiomara Castro has held the pro tempore presidency of CELAC, an organization made up of 33 countries. During the upcoming summit, the Honduran president will hand over the pro tempore presidency of CELAC to Gustavo Petro.

CELAC was established in 2010 to deepen political, economic, social, and cultural integration among its member states. It aims to promote unity and cooperation among countries in the region, reduce dependence on U.S.-controlled international institutions such as the Organization of American States (OAS), and serve as a platform for coordinating policies on issues such as development, climate change, trade, and human rights.

Launched in 2011 in Venezuela, CELAC currently includes 33 countries that seek to strengthen regional integration and represent the region’s interests more independently on the global stage.