On 8 and 9 August 2024, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) actively participated in the recent Latin American and Caribbean Ministerial Summit on Artificial Intelligence, held in Cartagena, Colombia. ECLAC, as a strategic ally of the Ministry of Information and Communications Technologies of Colombia, provided decisive support throughout the Summit.
On the first day of the meeting, the director of ECLAC’s Productive and Business Development Division, Marco Llinás, moderated the Ministerial Roundtable focused on Digital Education for AI. During his speech, Llinás highlighted the importance of addressing the three development traps affecting the region, underlining the central role that digital technologies, and in particular artificial intelligence, must play in overcoming these challenges.
“At ECLAC we are convinced that in order to escape these traps, digital technologies, and in particular artificial intelligence, are called upon to play a central role,” said Llinás in his opening speech. He also stressed the urgent need to train the population of Latin America and the Caribbean in advanced technological skills, which will allow the region to reach new levels of progress and well-being. “This opportunity will require working on many fronts, but certainly one of the most important will be to have a population with a higher degree of digital literacy and a workforce equipped with advanced skills that allow us to take advantage of these opportunities,” he added.
The Ministerial Roundtable was attended by prominent leaders and experts in education and technology from across Latin America and the Caribbean, where the discussion focused on two central questions raised about the strategies implemented to promote AI in the region and what experiences and success stories can be shared.
At the end of his moderation, Llinás reiterated the challenge that Latin America faces in terms of digital transformation and invited countries to articulate their efforts in this area with productive development policies. He emphasized the need to strengthen and take advantage of existing international governance spaces, such as the Digital Agenda for Latin America and the Caribbean (eLAC)and invited those present to participate in the ninth eLAC ministerial conference, which will be held in November in Santiago, Chile. On this occasion, high-level dialogues will be held between Europe and Latin America on artificial intelligence within the framework of the Digital Alliance project.
As a result of the Summit, the ‘Cartagena de Indias Declaration for Governance, the Construction of Artificial Intelligence (AI) Ecosystems and the Promotion of AI Education in an Ethical and Responsible manner in Latin America and the Caribbean’ was adopted, signed by 17 countries, including Colombia. This declaration reflects the countries’ commitment to the implementation of inclusive and sustainable artificial intelligence strategies.
ECLAC’s active participation in these events is of utmost importance, as it strengthens its role as a driver of the Digital Agenda in the region and allows it to continue promoting the development of the digital ecosystem in Latin America and the Caribbean through a process of regional integration and cooperation.
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