ECLAC participates in training on cluster initiatives in Colombia

On Monday, August 26, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) actively participated in the third session of the virtual training cycle, organized by Colombia Productiva under the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Tourism of Colombia, with the aim of strengthening capacities and promoting the exchange of experiences among leaders of cluster initiatives in the region. This event is part of the space called “Capacity building and exchange of experiences for leaders of cluster initiatives.”

The session, opened by Silvia Amorocho, Cluster executive at Productive Colombia, focused on how intercluster initiatives can transform territories and companies. The session included the participation of Marco Dini, economic affairs officer of the Productive and Business Development Division of ECLAC, who gave a presentation on the current situation in Latin America and the Caribbean, highlighting the three major development traps that limit growth and productivity, exacerbate inequality and weaken governance in the region.

Dini also presented the Platform for Cluster Initiatives and Other Territorial Productive Articulation Initiatives (IAPT), emphasizing ECLAC’s commitment to promoting productive development policies with a territorial focus. In his speech, he underlined the regional commission’s desire to expand activities in this area, promoting peer learning with the support of various government institutions in the countries of the region. “We want to create training activities where actors from all over Latin America can meet to exchange ideas on how to manage an associative experience,” said Dini.

The event also included a panel moderated by Marc Papell, director of Cluster Development, which included the participation of prominent cluster leaders such as Xavier Cárdenas, president of the Digital Transformation Cluster of Guayaquil, and Luis Eduardo Pérez Figueredo, Construction Cluster Manager of the Chamber of Commerce of Bucaramanga. During the discussion, the unique implementation strategies of each initiative were analyzed, focusing on the articulation of high-impact projects in innovation and competitiveness, in order to promote strategic change in the region.

This type of meeting reinforces ECLAC’s work in implementing territorial productive development, training leaders of associative activities in Latin America and the Caribbean, and promoting collaboration and the exchange of knowledge among different regional actors.