BRAVO COUNCIL Calgary

1. Enrique Garcia and Jane Bussey, editorial director, Latin Trade Group. 2. Ramiro Crespo, president, Analytica Securities; Oscar Jasaui; Bernardo Guillamon, advisor to the Offi ce of Outreach and Partnerships, Inter-American Development Bank. 3. Pierina Correa, director, Fundación Abriendo Caminos (Ecuador); Enrique García, president and CEO, Corporación Andina de Fomento (CAF). 4. Simon Strong, senior managing director, FTI Consulting; James Quigley, executive vice chairman, international corporate and investment banking, Bank of America Merrill Lynch; Oscar Jasaui, President, Pacific Credit Rating; Martin W. Schubert, chairman, InterAmerican Finance Corporation. 5. Shane Jaffer, director, International Financial Institutions, Government of Alberta, Canada. 6. Raul R. Herrera, partner, Arnold & Porter LLP.

In a region confronting the need to build for the future, the Corporación Andina de Fomento — a 40-year-old regional development bank — has long been on the forefront of funding infrastructure projects. But private-sector investment and innovative financing, such as special funds for infrastructure, also are necessary to foster development in the region, says Enrique García, the president and CEO of CAF.
García was the keynote speaker at the Latin Trade Group’s BRAVO Council, held on March 27 in Calgary, Canada, during the annual meeting of the Inter-American Development Bank. Addressing a group of bankers, financial analysts and development specialists, García said Latin America and the Caribbean are an economic success story. But he cautioned leaders and policymakers to avoid complacency since countries faced major challenges, not only in terms of investing in infrastructure but also in reducing poverty and inequality.
“Infrastructure is a key component in development and Latin America is not doing very well in that,” García said, adding that infrastructure investments in Latin America equaled just 3 percent of the gross domestic product in the past decade, while Asia’s rate was 10 percent. Ideally, Latin America and the Caribbean would try to double the amount of investment on infrastructure, García said.
The CAF, which has approved more than $10 billion in loans for development, including infrastructure projects, focuses not only on the finances of the projects but also on their quality, from economic returns to environmental concerns to future maintenance, García emphasized.
García urged nations to use technology, innovation and creativity to build their competitive advantage and not to depend so heavily on commodity exports.