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OAS Permanent Council Discusses the Role of Public-Private Partnerships in the Future of the Americas

The Permanent Council of the Organization of American States (OAS) today hosted, in a special meeting, a discussion on "The Americas in the changing global economic scenario: the value of public-private partnerships," which was attended by leading private sector figures from across the region.

The Chair of the Permanent Council and Permanent Representative of Antigua and Barbuda to the OAS, Deborah-Mae Lovell, opened the meeting by recalling that “in recent years the Organization of American States has initiated efforts to facilitate constructive dialogue with key partners in the Americas, including civil society and the private sector. We have witnessed increased support from business leaders and entrepreneurs for OAS projects and initiatives which benefit vulnerable groups and we have engaged in meaningful dialogue at the private sector fora of both the OAS General Assemblies and the Summits of the Americas.”

Ambassador Lovell said that despite the economic growth of recent years, experts say the outlook is complex and that some achievements in social inclusion could be jeopardized. Taking this into account, concluded the Chair of the Council, it is more important than ever that governments hear the perspectives of the private sector representatives of the Hemisphere.

The Assistant Secretary General of the OAS, Albert Ramdin, recalled that since 2006 the Organization has had a mandate to promote the economic well-being of the member states. "Democracy, which is our first priority, cannot be strong or true if the citizens of the Americas are struggling with unemployment, layoffs, low wages, or food insecurity." said Ramdin. At the same time, he continued, "the Organization has recognized that economic well-being cannot solely be the responsibility of the states. Rather, governments, civil society, public and private sectors must work together to promote economic growth which supports stability, democracy and progress.”

The high-level official of the hemispheric Organization affirmed that the OAS remains committed to working with member states on the issue and added, "while we are facing new challenges, we must find new solutions. These new solutions will come from new visions, partnerships and new actions. I believe we must be willing to engage with new partners in a transparent environment which facilitates mutual respect." Ambassador Ramdin, who summarized the conclusions of the discussion upon its conclusion, emphasized the importance of keeping in mind that "we are all looking for the same purpose: a prosperous, stable and peaceful society, and what we're doing here is analyzing how to establish a relationship between the various stakeholders to achieve that goal."

The meeting was attended by Michael Lee Chin, President of Portland Holdings of Canada and Jamaica; Samuel Urrutia, President of the Latin American Business Council (CEAL); Stanley Motta, President of Copa Holdings, and President of Motta International of Panama; Carlos Bulgheroni, President of Bridas Corporation of Argentina; and Carlos Añaños, Member of the Board and President for Asia of AJE; Roberto Zamora, Executive President of Lafise and President of the Zamora Terán Foundation of Nicaragua; Ingo Plöger, President of CEAL Brazil and President of IP Desenvolvimento Empresarial e Institucional Ltda., Brasil; Ross Anderson, Vice President of Scotia Bank, Canada; Jodi Bond, Vice President for the Americas of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce; and Diego de la Torre, President of La Viga, Peru , and President of the UN Global Compact, Peru.

The President of Portland Holdings presented his view of the appropriate roles to be assumed by governments and the private sector in order to have a productive relationship. The role of governments, said Michael Lee Chin, "is primarily to build confidence. Within that framework, government’s role is to enable, to regulate and to provide an environment of economic stability and predictability." At the same time, “the highest value added to the public private partnership by the private sector is to behave in such a way as to create wealth for the country by building strong indigenous businesses," said Lee. " For public private partnerships to work over the long term to bring prosperity and social development for all, governments and the private sector have to be indelibly clear about their respective responsibilities," concluded the Jamaican entrepreneur.

Samuel Urrutia, President of International CEAL, stressed the need to "work on regulatory frameworks, incentives, financing, broadband infrastructure and training, areas in which the state and the private sector have to work together in a coordinated manner." The business leader highlighted the possibilities represented by the youth of the region, but also the responsibility that exists to provide the tools to enable them to compete in the labor market. At the end of his presentation, Urrutia proposed "the creation of a working group on state - business-civil society relations to be established with the primary aim of promoting the expansion of public-private partnerships to address core issues that impact our societies in a concrete way."

The President of Copa Holdings, Stanley Motta, said “all our countries share the same agenda," consisting of " education, public health, public transport, job creation, infrastructure, security and governance." To improve in these areas, Motta said, "there can be no doubt that working together we will get a better return on every penny we invest." But a key point, according to the Panamanian businessman, is that "governments must establish the agenda. If the governments of our countries make an effort to clearly define what is a public -private partnership and how we want to work together, we can be much more successful in improving the living conditions of our people."

For his part, Carlos Bulgheroni, President of Bridas Corporation, said that when discussing public-private partnerships, a key point is that "the state is unique, it is not dependent on changes of government, and consequently the rules of the game are a fundamental factor for investment. They cannot be changed, in any way, by successive governments.” "The rules of the game and their enforceability," continued Bulgheroni, "are the foundations for the development of a business, and essential for investment." " I believe it is essential that we think about these issues without ideologies," said the President of Bridas Corporation, but rather in terms of partners and alliances.

Carlos Añaños, Member of the Board and President for Asia of the AJE Group, emphasized how private companies contribute to development through investment, employment, support for micro-entrepreneurs and generating taxes. " It is clear that to further develop our countries, companies and governments have to work hand in hand," said Añaños. He explained that when his company is thinking of investing in a new country, the fundamental elements it seeks are: the rule of law, stability, transparency, access to education and health care, equity and competitiveness. In short, said the Peruvian business leader, "the common objective is that we all continue to develop."

The Executive President of Lafise and President of the Fundación Zamora Terán, in Nicaragua, Roberto Zamora, spoke of the importance of education as an area in which the public and private sectors can work together to bridge the digital divide, reduce poverty and make a qualitative leap to impact the lives of the inhabitants of the Hemisphere. "There is no solution to poverty reduction that can be achieved without education," he said, recalling that if there is no progress on this issue it will be very difficult to achieve other objectives. Zamora also noted that exchanges between governments and private sector like the ones promoted within the framework of the OAS "are an important catalyst to explore ways of communication and cooperation."

The President of the Latin American Business Council (CEAL) in Brazil and President of IP Desenvolvimento Empresarial e Institucional Ltda, Ingo Plöger, alluded to the challenges faced by governments worldwide in terms of malnutrition, lack of water and access to essential medicines. Plöger emphasized that every week 120,000 children die worldwide due to malnutrition or lack of access to essential medicines, so that issues like this should be at the center of the development policies of the countries of the region. "We need to find responses to this situation, responses that include social inclusion and poverty reduction," he said. In that context, he reflected that it is necessary to promote economic sustainability that fosters social sustainability, and on that point he highlighted the role of the private sector as an engine of the economy and as a key part of the solution to these challenges.

For his part, the Vice President of Scotia Bank, Canada, Ross Anderson, described some of the initiatives that the institution undertakes in conjunction with the governments of the countries in which it operates. He cited the issue of corporate social responsibility as one of the cornerstones of such cooperation, which he considered "an example of how private enterprise and governments can work together for social good." He also noted that financial inclusion, job creation, promotion of an enabling environment for investment and inclusive growth are crucial areas in which the private sector and governments should increase their cooperation.

The Vice President for the Americas of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, Jodi Bond, spoke of the structure of the entity and the way it works with the governments of the Hemisphere. "Our vision is focused on a community of socially and environmentally responsible businesses that save, invest, create jobs and encourage broad prosperity in the region and the world," she said, adding that from the perspective of the Chamber, the main challenges facing the Hemisphere in order to achieve this vision are related to the high costs of transporting goods across borders and communications infrastructure, "which can be improved if we have an appropriate legal and regulatory framework involving the private sector in mobilizing resources," she noted.

Finally, the President of La Viga, Peru, and President of the UN Global Pact, Diego de la Torre, discussed the evolving role of the private sector and entrepreneurship in pursuit of economic and social development, asserting that "with the end of the Cold War we moved ahead in the concept that the entrepreneurs are part of the solution." In this regard, he said the private sector can contribute on issues such as the creation of wealth and its equitable distribution. He also noted the need to overcome existing stereotypes regarding the goals and mission of the private sector, governments and civil society to ensure that all work together to achieve solutions and form alliances. Finally, he noted that the relationship of these three actors is important to promote institutionalization, formalization to combat criminality, corporate social responsibility and awareness of the importance of "laying bridges so that employers can be architects in building a better world."

Today's meeting was chaired by the Permanent Representative of Antigua and Barbuda, Deborah-Mae Lovell, and the representatives of Mexico, Panama, Chile, the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, Costa Rica, Dominica, Brazil, Jamaica, Guyana, Canada, the United States, Nicaragua and Colombia all took the floor during the session.

A gallery of photos of the event is available here.

The video of the event is available here.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-449/13