Ibero-American Summit focuses on youth, entrepreneurship and education

World Today

The 25th Ibero-American Summit has begun in Cartagena, Colombia. This is where Spain and Portugal come together with their former colonies in Latin America. This year’s theme is youth, entrepreneurship and education, an area where Latin America has a lot of catching up to do.

CCTV America’s Michael Voss is reports:

The Argentina foreign ministers is working on a draft declaration and action plan to improve education across the region for heads of state to sign on Saturday.

Argentine Foreign Minister Susana Malcorra on Ibero-American Summit, youth and education, the economy, and relations with China:

International tests suggest that in terms of access to education and classroom results, the region is falling behind other parts of the world.

One of the first heads of state to arrive was King Felipe of Spain. With his country’s historical and cultural ties to Latin America, the region is one of Spain’s top foreign policy priorities after the European Union.

Ecuador President Rafael Correa on on Julian Assange, the Colombia peace process, Venezuelan sanctions, and not running for office:

Eight Latin American presidents are due to attend – most others are sending vice presidents or foreign ministers.

It’s still not clear if Venezuela’s president Nicolas Maduro will come to the summit. He is facing criticism over his handling of the Venezuela’s crisis and the opposition. Argentina’s foreign minister said that the trading block Mercosur is considering suspending Venezuela over its human rights record.

The other pressing issue which summit delegates want to hear about is the state of the peace process here in Colombia. Last month’s agreement with the FARC rebels was rejected in a referendum while the beginning of talks with the smaller ELN guerrilla group is on hold.


Federiga Bindi discusses the Ibero Summit

To discuss this year’s Ibero Summit, CCTV America’s Mike Walter spoke with Federiga Bindi, senior fellow at the Center for Transatlantic Relations at SAIS Johns Hopkins.