The Executive Director of the EU-LAC International Foundation, Dr Adrián Bonilla, travelled to Berlin, on October 18th to exchange with Ambassador Marian Schuegraf, Director for Latin America and the Caribbean at the German Federal Foreign Office.
The German government, hosting the EU-LAC Foundation at its headquarters in the Free and Hanseatic city of Hamburg since its establishment in 2011, has been of continued support for the proper functioning of the international organisation. Therefore, the Executive Director expressed his gratitude and invited the German authorities personally to attend the next meeting of the Board of Governors of the EU-LAC Foundation in November 2021 in Hamburg, where the 10th anniversary of the Foundation will be celebrated.
Furthermore, the participants of the meeting addressed the progress of the signature and ratification of the Headquarters Agreement of the Foundation and exchanged their strategic visions of the bi-regional association going into the year 2022. Ambassador Schuegraf reiterated the importance of reactivating the political dialogue at the highest level between Latin America and the Caribbean and the European Union and expressed her interest in some of the Foundation’s work activities of 2022, especially in the areas of climate change, and sustainable, resilient and inclusive economy.
During his stay in Berlin, the Executive Director also met with Dr Barbara Göbel, Director of the Ibero-American Institute of Berlin and discussed possible areas of interest for joint initiatives. Both expressed their willingness and the potential for collaborations in the field of science, technology and innovation, and multilateralism. Therefore, the workshop with Think Tanks and Research Centers specialized in LAC in Europe, and the Young Scientists Seminar – both activities by the EU-LAC Foundation implemented in 2022 – offer adequate opportunities to join forces.
