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Secretary General of the OAS and President Hernández Inaugurate First Ethanol Plant in the East of Honduras

The Secretary General of the Organization of American States, José Miguel Insulza, and the President of Honduras, Juan Orlando Hernández, inaugurated today at the headquarters of the National Agricultural University the first ethanol plant in the east of the Central American country, an initiative that seeks to broaden the cooperation on biofuels in the Hemisphere, and that benefits from the technical support of the hemispheric institution and the support of the Governments of Brazil and the United States.

Secretary General Insulza highlighted the importance for sustainable development and the energy independence of Honduras of the inauguration of the ethanol plant in the city of Catacamas, in the Department of Olancho. “Today we are witnessing something more than the inauguration of a plant, we are witnessing the commitment of a country – and the National Agricultural University – to develop the bases of the design of politics and sustainable regulatory frameworks for the use of biofuels,” he said. Insulza added that “a country that does not have access to energy is a country that cannot satisfy the basic needs of its citizens like transportation, nutrition, employment, and economic and social development.”

President Hernández, for his part, thanked the OAS leader for the collaboration of the Organization with his country in various programs and areas, and referred to the presence of the Organization in Electoral Observation Missions, as well as the work of the judicial facilitators.
In his address, Secretary General Insulza said the inauguration of the plant is a concrete action by Honduras toward development, to contribute to the diversification of its energy matrix. Upon recalling that the countries of the Hemisphere agreed in the Summit of the Americas of 2009 to create a series of alliances to promote clean energy and reduce the emission of carbon gas, he said Honduras was well on its way, “and an example of that is this plant and the new Law of Biofuels approved in April of this year.” “This plant will help to reduce the energy dependence on fossil fuels and reduce the emission of greenhouse gases, protecting the environment. Moreover, it will help in the creation of new jobs in the industry and in agriculture.”

Secretary General Insulza mentioned that the OAS signed with Honduras an agreement to provide technical assistance on this issue, in the transfer of technology as well as information on sustainable development. Moreover, he thanked the Governments of Brazil and the United States for their support for the initiative, made possible by an agreement signed by both countries with the OAS in 2007. “The opening of this plant is a concrete example of the things that we must achieve in this region, where many documents are signed by they don´t always bear fruit,” he said. “Here is a very clear justification for the kind of alliances that we want to contribute to: participation of governments, – in this case three – of universities, and of international organizations, which is a virtuous cycle of international cooperation, and for the good of a country, in which we are working to produce a fair, democratic social development.”

Together with the Secretary General of the OAS and the leader of Honduras, the inauguration also featured the participation of the Ambassador of Brazil in Honduras, Zenic Krawctschuk; the Rector of the National Agricultural University, Oscar Ovidio Redondo; the Permanent Representative of Honduras to the OAS, Leónidas Rosa Bautista; the OAS Representative in Honduras, Claudia Barrientos; the Economic and Commercial Advisor of the Embassy of the United States, Michael Taylor; national and local authorities, academics, business leaders, and representatives of the diplomatic corps, among others.

A gallery of photos of the event is available here.

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

Reference: E-301/14