From today until Wednesday, August 28, 2024, Montevideo becomes the epicenter of the debate on local economic development in Latin America and the Caribbean, hosting the fourth edition of the Regional Forum for Local Economic Development. Under the motto “New perspectives and models for local economic development”, this event is consolidated as a key space for regional exchange, whose experience will contribute to enriching the VI edition of the World Forum on Local Economic Development, which will be held in Seville. April 1 to 4, 2025.

The opening ceremony included the intervention of prominent representatives, including members of the International Committee of the World Forum for Local Economic Development, Pierre Martinot-Lagarde and Gemma Aguado , as well as the Ambassador of Spain in Uruguay, Santiago Jiménez Martín, who accompanied the mayor from Montevideo, Mauricio Zunino.

Pierre Martinot-Lagarde, from the International Labor Organization (ILO), and Gemma Aguado, from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), highlighted the trajectory of the Forum since its first edition in Seville in 2010, highlighting its fundamental role in the generation of alliances and in the promotion of development driven from the territories.

For his part, the Ambassador of Spain in Uruguay, Santiago Jiménez Martín, stressed that the forum is a catalyst to unite various actors—public and private sectors, civil society—in the search for innovative solutions from the territories to face the challenges global.

Finally, the mayor of Montevideo, Mauricio Zunino, highlighted the importance of this forum, stating that “what we build today will be for the future.” Furthermore, he emphasized the need for Latin America and the Caribbean to continue developing a local perspective on development.

During the next three days, Montevideo will be the meeting point for more than 200 representatives of international, national and local organizations; subnational governments and city networks; companies, private institutions, research centers, development agents, the academic field and social organizations. These actors will meet to participate in work tables and discussion panels, configuring this forum as a unique space for the exchange of knowledge and the formulation of joint strategies that promote inclusive, sustainable and equitable local development throughout the region.