XVI OAS Policy Roundtable
“Post-Summit Briefing: A New Beginning in Inter-American Relations?”
Assessment of the V Summit of the Americas and the Future of Inter-American Relations

Friday, May 1, 2009
10:00 am -12:00 pm
Hall of the Americas
17th Street and Constitution Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20006

Address by Enrique Arturo de Obarrio Vice-President, Private Sector of the Americas

Let me begin by congratulating our Secretary General José Miguel Insulza and Ambassador Albert Ramdin for supporting the participation efforts of the private sector in the Inter-American dialogue with the States. In addition, I wish to avail myself of this occasion to congratulate Dr. Irene Klinger, Director of OAS Department of International Affairs.

I would like to express the pleasure I feel to be here today, in this respectable Hall of the Americas, at OAS headquarters, as it evokes many pleasant memories from a very interesting period approximately 19 years ago, when I found myself proudly serving my country as a Panamanian Ambassador and Alternate Representative to the OAS.

Four years ago, there was no formal channel whereby the private sector could communicate and make its contributions to the States of the Hemisphere concerning the items included in the Inter-American agenda for development. The efforts to promote an approach with the private sector started with Secretary General Insulza. Moreover, it counted on the vital support from OAS Department of Commerce and Tourism. Among many others, I must acknowledge the dedicated effort, hard work, and efficiency shown by Maryse Robert, Director in charge, and by my fellow citizen Gisela Vergara, from OAS Department of Commerce and Tourism.

All these efforts, combined with the strong commitment and support of the PSA President, all its directors, and our teamwork have made it possible to create the “Private Sector of the Americas.”

We have worked hand in hand with the OAS and its Member States to promote top-level discussions with experts through the Private Sector Forums. The last one –after increasingly successful experiences in Ft Lauderdale, Buenos Aires, Santo Domingo, Panama, and Medellin– was organized by the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, with the support from the OAS and the Private Sector of the Americas, within the framework of the V Summit of the Americas.

During this Forum held in Port of Spain, we focused our discussions on the role of the private sector in the accomplishment of the goals defined in the Summit. Why is the participation of the private sector in the Summit, the OAS General Assemblies, and the ministerial meetings so important?

The private sector can play a significant role in the efforts to mitigate poverty, mainly through the creation of good jobs. The companies in the region are becoming increasingly aware of the basic principles of corporate social responsibility, which urges to take into consideration the interests of the parties directly involved, as well as the interests of workers, local communities, providers, and consumers alike. Thus, responsible competitiveness becomes more sustainable in time. Moreover, it is more likely to instill confidence among the interested parties, and also establish legitimacy for businesses. Fostering confidence is very important for social peace and political stability. In addition, it contributes to the creation of a predictable and reliable environment for businesses.

Partnerships between the public and the private sectors may take different forms. The States may provide positive incentives to promote new partnerships between the private and the public sectors, including transparent contracting regimes to facilitate the relationships between both sectors, and smart regulations to promote efficiency and energy savings, thus paving the way for mutually beneficial solutions. The Forum of Trinidad and Tobago presented new experiences of public-private partnerships for mega projects in many areas. They included infrastructure, transportation, energy, information technology, and communications. Moreover, joint financing was a decisive factor for their success. In Trinidad and Tobago, the private sector also laid the emphasis on a number of examples of partnerships between the private and the public sectors in the social, health, and educational areas, all under the protection offered by corporate social responsibility. They went from basic projects to improve milk and cocoa production to projects intended to develop capabilities among indigenous populations and small businessmen.

The Forum of Trinidad and Tobago asked the OAS to create a website. Its purpose is to collect and document these "successful experiences of public-private partnerships” and to promote their being imitated and extended. The speakers and participants alike urged the States to encourage private investments and to stand against protectionism, as it has been empirically proved that in times of crisis protectionism hinders development. Evidently, no partnership with the public sector can exist without a strong and profitable private sector. Moreover, no social program led by private sector is possible either.

In the light of the current crisis, the joint work by the States, the private sector, and the civil society becomes imperative. Some of the most useful public-private programs to mitigate the rise in unemployment in the short term (and this would also help to increase productivity and enhance equity in the long term) include the following: housing programs for low-income families, small public works projects, better and more focused transfers to increase the income of poor families as to let them maintain their children at school and access healthcare centers, and infrastructure programs.

Considering the significance of the private sector as a partner for the States in the accomplishment of the goals set forth in the Summit, strengthening a broad participation of the private sector is crucial. This is not only important within the framework of the Summits and the OAS General Assemblies, but also for the hemispheric ministerial meetings as a follow-up on specific issues.

We believe that if we intend and we know how to work together into one and the same direction, we will get over this crisis and be stronger as a region. The private sector is here to communicate its strong and determined commitment to help our nations reach human prosperity, energy security, and environmental sustainability.

However, we need an effective and formal social dialogue to promote an atmosphere of confidence among the States, the business executives, and the workers that could contribute, with the help and the involvement of the organized civil society, to prioritize, harmonize, and reach consensus on the many challenges we must face to ensure social peace, welfare, and sustainable development for our peoples. We should give more importance to the Social Cohesion processes. Moreover, we call upon for the formalization of an effective dialogue with the States at the hemispheric level, as to ensure efficient and lasting human and social development in our countries through an equitable inter-sectorial mechanism to effectively follow up and comply with our agreements. This is a goal we all share. Moreover, it is a goal that may finally put an end to so much poverty and social inequity in our region.

In short, it is an ongoing coordination mechanism that will shape the Social Cohesion processes. In turn, it will boost a constructive dialogue and efficient actions among all the sectors involved in cooperation and on an equal footing in order to honor and fulfill the commitments undertaken and to overcome the pressing social hardships such as poverty, inequity, weak political cultures, among others.

As we stated in Trinidad and Tobago, the Summit of Heads of States became a very important and resolute step into the right direction in the road that all the sectors have to take together in an interdependent way to face all social hardships. We must do so because it is the only way to enjoy prosperity in the future. Yet, the prosperity we envision has to be collective, sympathetic, featured by widespread wealth, but within the framework of a democratic system.