The Costa Rica News (TCRN) – The Seventh Summit of the Americas begins today in Panama City, Panama. For this Summit, scheduled for April 10-11, 2015, the central theme is “Prosperity with Equity: The Challenge of Cooperation in the Americas”. The Summit occurs every three years.
The Summits of the Americas is meeting of the heads of state and government in the Americas where policy issues, shared values and commitments are discussed to address the new challenges in the Americas.
The theme for the Seventh Summit of the Americas, “Prosperity with Equity: The Challenge of Cooperation in the Americas”, will table issues such as education, health, energy, environment, migration, security, citizen engagement and the governing and growth of democracy.
Beyond question, Latin America is growing fast. The Latin American GDP will top $10 trillion by 2020 with the massive growth of the middle class consumer, although the real concern is whether this prosperity will be shared by across the class spectrum.
While many countries in Latin America are seeing very strong economic growth, equity, peace and stability are issues of concern throughout the Americas.
Cuba and Venezuela are topics that are expected to over-shadow this Summit. Raúl Castro of Cuba and the United States recently agreed to normalize relations. Opening Cuba to the rest of the Americas and the world presents interesting opportunities for the entire region.
Relations with Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro have deteriorated. In March 2015, the U.S. administration imposed sanctions against Venezuelan officials and stated that Venezuela was a “national security threat” to U.S. interests.
During this Summit of the Americas, U.S. President Barack Obama will hold meets with several Central American leaders, including Costa Rica President Luis Guillermo Solís.
Costa Rica President Luis Guillermo Solís said he would discuss with Obama the inclusion Costa Rica in a proposed $1 billion aid package that has been propose for El Salvador, Honduras, and Guatemala. As well, Solís said they would also like discuss recent development with Russia with Nicaragua growing relationship.
The Costa Rica News (TCRN)
San Jose Costa Rica