EU–LAC Foundation

European Union-Latin America and Caribbean Foundation

Abbreviation	EU–LAC Foundation
Formation	2010 Foundation under German civil law
Type	International Organisation
Legal status	2019 International Organisation under international public law
Headquarters	Hamburg, Germany
Membership	62 members
Official languages	English Spanish
President	-
Executive Director	Adrián Bonilla
Website	www.eulacfoundation.org

The European Union – Latin America and Caribbean Foundation (EU–LAC Foundation) is an international organisation created in 2010 by the Heads of State and Government of the European Union (EU), Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) with the mission to strengthen and promote the strategic partnership between both regions, improve its visibility and encourage the participation of the respective civil societies.^[1]

Established in 2011 in Hamburg, Germany, where it is based, the Foundation is a tool for bi-regional relations. Its activities are aimed at nurturing intergovernmental dialogue, in particular in five strategic thematic areas: Higher Education and Knowledge Generation; Science, Technology and Innovation; Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) and Competitiveness; Sustainable Development and Climate Change; and Culture. However, other themes such as gender and youth are transversal axes for all its lines of action, which allows the Foundation to be a key actor in the deepening and dynamization of the bi-regional strategic association.

The Foundation has 62 members: 33 Member States from Latin America and the Caribbean, 27 Member States of the European Union, the United Kingdom, and the EU itself.

History[]

During the fifth European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean Summit (EU–LAC Summit, a bi-annual meeting of Heads of State and Government of the European, Latin American and Caribbean countries), held in Lima on 16 May 2008, the initiative towards the creation of a bi-regional organisation was launched by the Heads of State and Government of LAC and the EU.

At the sixth EU–LAC Summit, held in Madrid on 18 May 2010, the decision on the creation of the EU–LAC Foundation was launched by the Heads of State and Government of the EU and LAC, the President of the European Council and the President of the Commission. The Foundation was created "as a useful tool for strengthening our bi-regional partnership and as a means of triggering debate on common strategies and actions".

The EU–LAC Foundation formally began operating in November 2011. Its headquarters are in the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg. The Foundation was established and started operating with a transitory status as foundation under the German civil law.^[2]

The Agreement establishing the EU–LAC Foundation as an international organisation with legal personality under public international law was opened for signature during the CELAC and EU Foreign Ministers Meeting in Santo Domingo on 25 October 2016 and entered into force on 17 May 2019.^[3]

Members[]

The Foundation consists of 62 members: 33 member states from Latin America and the Caribbean, 27 member states from the European Union, the United Kingdom, and the EU itself.^[4]

Complete list of the members of the EU–LAC Foundation:

Latin American and Caribbean Members[]

EU Members States + The United Kingdom[]

Objectives and Activities[]

The objectives^[5] of the Foundation are:

• contribute to the strengthening of the CELAC-EU bi-regional partnership process involving participation and inputs of civil society and other social actors;
• encourage further mutual knowledge and understanding between both regions;
• enhance the mutual visibility between both regions, as well as of the bi-regional partnership itself.

To meet its objectives, the EU–LAC Foundation develops several initiatives in the following thematic areas:^[6]

Higher Education and Knowledge Generation[]

The Foundation promotes^[7] the creation of an EU-LAC Higher Education Area, particularly by supporting and linking academic networks. It contributes to creating spaces for dialogue and knowledge exchange that feed the bi-regional agenda.

The EU–LAC Foundation supports knowledge generation, including the promotion of bi-regional publications^[8] and events, as well as facilitating the participation and contribution of civil society (including academia) in bi-regional cooperation and dialogue. In this area, it will continue to support exchanges between academics and expert groups, to stimulate analysis of bi-regional relations, as well as inclusive research projects.

The Foundation manages a digital library^[9] and a network of libraries in both regions as repository libraries,^[10] as well as a newsletter^[11] to promote discussion of common strategies related to the EU-LAC bi-regional partnership.

In addition, the Foundation regularly organises forums for reflection, spaces where it encourages open debate between senior officials from the Foundation's member countries and the academic, economic, and civil society sectors, on various issues of importance to bi-regional relations.

Science, Technology and Innovation[]

In this area,^[12] the EU–LAC Foundation encourages dialogue around a common research and innovation agenda. Through its activities, it aims to strengthen the linkage of agendas and dialogue between academic, governmental, non-governmental, and think-tank stakeholders on the implementation of the EU-CELAC Joint Research Area. The emphasis is, for example, on increasing the possibilities of access to EU-LAC scientific cooperation resources, such as Horizon 2020, Marie Sklodowska-Curie, and ERASMUS+, from the countries that currently have less participation in these programmes.

Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs), and Competitiveness[]

In the economic sphere, the EU–LAC Foundation focuses^[13] on the internationalisation of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The declaration of the EU-CELAC ministerial meeting, held in July 2018, highlighted “the need for value addition by developing countries and for further integration of micro, small and medium-sized enterprises into value chains”^[14]

The Foundation has been working in this area for several years, focusing on the internationalisation of SMEs, the exchange of information between competitive clusters in both regions, the development of industrial atlases to identify clusters, the identification of good practices in education and vocational training, and the promotion of corporate social responsibility (RSE) ^[15]

Sustainable Development and Climate Change[]

Climate change is one of the priorities mentioned at the third EU-LAC Summit, as well as in the bi-regional Action Plan, with the aim of both regions working together to address climate change and sustainable development. The Foundation is working^[16] to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) within the framework of Agenda 2030. The Foundation seeks to support governments and other relevant stakeholders in the EU and LAC regions in the implementation of climate change policies and strategies, particularly in Small Island Developing States (SIDS), by providing in-depth analysis of the problem where little information is available.

Culture[]

The cultural links between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean are a fundamental element of the Strategic Partnership. Therefore, more than for other geographical areas of cultural exchange, it is a fundamental component of bi-regional relations. In this context, the Foundation is entrusted with promoting cultural cooperation and discussing the role of culture and cultural and creative industries in both regions.^[17] In the Brussels EU-CELAC Declaration of 2015, the Heads of State and Government of both regions called on the Foundation to promote regional cooperation between the two regions.^[18]

The Foundation's activities in the area of culture are therefore designed to foster greater knowledge and mutual understanding, as well as to promote the principles and values of the bi-regional partnership. Within the work plan of the Foundation, culture is recognised as a tool for social cohesion and transformation, contributing at the bi-regional level to the resolution of integration conflicts and the preservation of identities, as well as providing resources for human development and economic growth.

Civil Society[]

Working with civil society actors and bringing them closer to the process of bi-regional dialogue is essential to the Foundation's mission. Therefore, in principle, all of the Foundation's initiatives involve the "participation and inputs of civil society and other social actors” and are aimed at "foster fruitful exchanges and new opportunities for contacts between civil society and other social actors".^[19] In addition, specific initiatives focus on gender and youth issues.

To promote possible alliances and synergies in thematic areas of relevance to the bi-regional partnership, and to offer new contact opportunities to different civil society entities (universities, research centres, NGOs, international organisations, SMEs, government agencies, individual researchers and postgraduate students) in both regions, the Foundation operates the MAPEO.^[20] Institutions are invited to register for free^[21]

Structure[]

The structure of the Foundation comprises the board of governors, the president, and the executive director.^[22]

Board of Governors[]

The EU–LAC Foundation's board of governors oversees the management of the Foundation and ensures that the Foundation is working towards its goals.

The board of governors has 62 members representing each of the members of the EU–LAC Foundation. The board of governors meets at least twice a year and is co-chaired by the CELAC and EU presidencies.^[23]

President[]

Every four years, the board of governors selects an ad-honorem president, who has mainly representation functions. The president's office alternates between a national of an EU member state and a national of a Latin American or Caribbean state. If the appointed president comes from an EU member state, the executive director must be a citizen of a Latin American or Caribbean state, and vice versa.

• 2011–2015: Benita Ferrero-Waldner, former Minister of Foreign Affairs of [[Austria and former EU Commissioner
• 2016–2020: Leonel Fernández, former president of the Dominican Republic^[24]
• 2020–:

Executive Director[]

The executive director is the legal representation of the EU–LAC Foundation. The executive director is elected by the board every four years, based on the recommendation of the regional group that holds the position of executive director for that period. If the selected Executive Director is from an EU Member State, the selected Chairperson is a citizen of a Latin American or Caribbean state, and vice versa.

• 2011–2015: Jorge Valdez Carrillo (Peru)
• 2016–2020: Paola Amadei (Italy)
• since July 2020: Adrián Bonilla (Ecuador)^[25]

Financing[]

The EU–LAC Foundation is funded by voluntary contributions from its members.

See also[]

• EU–LAC Summit (European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean Summit)
• Latin America and Caribbean

References[]

External links[]

• The Constitutive Agreement establishing the EU–LAC Foundation
• Official website of the European Union, Latin America and the Caribbean Foundation
• Madrid Declaration establishing the creation of the Foundation (§ 34)
• Information from the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg on the EU–LAC Foundation (in German)
• The EU's Relations with Latin America and the Caribbean, Federal Foreign Office of Germany
• The EU and Latin America and the Caribbean: towards a stronger partnership? , European Parliament, Policy Department for External Relations, 2020, doi:10.2861/658924.