EU-CELAC MINISTERIAL MEETING
SESSION I: Global Gateway Investment Agenda
Friday, 15 September. 14:30 – 16:30

Plenary hall. Museo Centro Gaias. Cidade da Cultura

The European Union (EU) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States
(CELAC) encompass 60 countries representing 14% of the world’s population and
21% of global GDP. Total trade between the EU and LAC countries in goods and services
has increased by almost 40% since the 2013 EU-CELAC Summit, while the EU is the
leading investor in the Latin American and Caribbean region.
The EU and CELAC share longstanding ties and strategic partnerships, strengthening
their ability to respond to global challenges. Climate change, the need to adapt to
technological transformation, geopolitical tensions and rising inequalities, among others,
show the need for greater multilateral cooperation and enhanced economic relations.
1. EU-CELAC Summit: an investment agenda for sustainable and inclusive growth
At the July 2023 EU-CELAC Summit, leaders pledged to renew and reinforce their
long-standing partnership, including by strengthening cooperation in key areas such
as global peace and security, trade and investment, climate change, justice and security
for citizens, as well as in multilateral fora. Additionally, they recognised “the potential
contribution of the EU-LAC Global Gateway Investment Agenda, which will address
investment gaps in line with the common priorities of the EU and Latin America and the
Caribbean.”
The Global Gateway Investment Agenda offers a unique tool for both regions to
reinforce their cooperation and embrace new opportunities for sustainable and
inclusive growth. It includes an initial selection of more than 130 potential publicprivate investment projects across strategic sectors of common interest. The investment
agenda, backed by the EU, Member States, international financial institutions, and the
private sector, aims to bridge funding gaps by mobilizing both private capital and public
funding for sustainable development, including digital transformation, education, health
infrastructures, energy production, environmental perspectives, raw materials and local
value chains. It is also an opportunity for best-practice sharing across both regions.
The European Commission announced that Team Europe is ready to provide over
45 billion euros to support the EU-LAC partnership. This represents an additional
18% of EU investment flows in LAC countries compared to the average since 2018,
while encouraging other concrete public and private investments in strategic sectors
in Latin America and the Caribbean. European funding is provided under different
modalities, depending on the needs of the project, origin of the funds or financial
institution involved.

INFORMAL MEETING OF ECONOMY AND FINANCE MINISTERS AND CENTRAL BANK GOVERNORS
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, 14-15-16 SEPTEMBER 2023

1/4

2. Implementation and follow-up of the Investment Agenda
We must start delivering on the Global Gateway Investment Agenda right away:
Santiago’s meeting provides for the perfect opportunity to advance its implementation.
The Investment Agenda’s 130 flagship projects have been selected by Leaders, after
a thorough analysis based on their impact in driving more sustainable economic
development and interconnected societies in LAC countries, as well as for representing
cutting-edge technology and for respecting the highest international standards. They are
also very tangible examples of what may be achieved through EU-CELAC collaboration.
The annex includes a selection of these projects to exemplify and orient Ministers’
discussion in order to ensure the Agenda’s continued momentum.
Leaders welcomed the potential contribution of the Global Gateway Investment
Agenda. We must now, as a team, deliver on their commitments: joint work is of the
essence between Team Europe (EU and its Member States, the EIB, bilateral European
Development Banks and Agencies, export credit agencies) and LAC countries, as well
as Multilateral Development Banks, other development finance institutions and the
private sector.
A specific monitoring and follow-up mechanism is needed for the successful
implemen-tation of the investment agenda, including the three elements below:
D Coordination and Monitoring based on a Team Europe approach. The European
Commission will collect the relevant information at project level and maintain
a regularly updated and comprehensive database on financial contributions and
investments mobilised. By the end of 2023, EU Member States and LAC countries,
as well as other stakeholders involved in specific projects, would designate focal
points to ensure swift collaboration. These focal points should cooperate with the
Commission, including at local level with EU delegations, to ensure coherence and
the agile exchange of information. EIB, CAF, IDB and other interested stakeholders
will work together and support the Commission in these tasks.
D Regular EU-CELAC High Level Summits and beyond. Future EU-CELAC High Level
Summits, to be held every two years as agreed by Leaders, will provide an opportunity
for best practice sharing and to consider next steps to broaden the Investment Agenda.
Additionally, overview meetings - using existing channels - will be held twice a year to
assess implementation and provide analysis and recommendations to Leaders. The
first of these meetings will take place in Brussels in Q1 2024.
D A fast-track implementation, that responds to the highest standards as well as
local needs. Governments in LAC countries would appoint a specific one-stop shop
with capacity to expedite the necessary administrative, legal and technical steps to
remove bottlenecks and improve the business climate to ease project execution by
the private sector. The European Commission and Member States would, in turn,
work together with LAC countries to ensure that projects respond to local needs, keep
incorporating strict social and environmental standards, and seek maximum positive
and lasting impact for local communities as well as to help access additional funding
and provide technical cooperations for projects in the agenda.
Questions for discussion:
1. Which Global Gateway Investment Projects would you like to highlight?
2. Do you agree with the proposed monitoring strategy?

INFORMAL MEETING OF ECONOMY AND FINANCE MINISTERS AND CENTRAL BANK GOVERNORS
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, 14-15-16 SEPTEMBER 2023

2/4

ANNEX

Illustrative selection of Global Gateway Investment Projects
1. Regional Program to protect the Amazon. An umbrella program to step up engagement
in the Amazon Region, to improve its conservation and foster sustainable development.
The aim of the program is to protect the biome and sustainably leveraging its natural
resources; help countries achieve their net zero deforestation targets and improve
the living standards of vulnerable populations in the Amazon region. The program
combines a series of multi-sectoral approaches focused on reducing pressure on forest
ecosystems, improving forestry, land management and sustainable livelihoods of local
communities, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing resilience of value
chains and ecosystems. Brazil will feature prominently in the program.
2. EU-LAC Digital Alliance. This is the first regional digital partnership between the EU
and Latin American and Caribbean countries. The EU-LAC Digital Alliance creates a
strategic framework to foster a substantial EU- LAC digital cooperation, which includes
EU Member States’ cooperation and EU-supported infrastructure in the region, such
as the BELLA programme on interconnectivity, regional Copernicus hubs and the LAC
Cyber Competence Centre, as well as other specific projects, such as ELPACCTO on
cybercrime. Some EU-LAC digital cooperation activities are underway such as the
extension of the BELLA cable and the creation of two regional Copernicus centres for
disaster risk reduction, climate change, land and marine monitoring.
3. Converting sargassum into opportunity. The exponential increase of accumulation of
the sargassum sea algae is the direct consequence of climate change, disproportionately
affecting the climate-vulnerable Caribbean region, its environment, economy, and
public health. There is a need to tackle this challenge through a structured, political and
practical public-private approach, to foster mitigation and commercial solutions. Team
Europe’s added value (including EIB) is bringing together all actors in support of this
all-Caribbean problem.
4. Expanding drinking water, sanitation systems and sewerage services. Investments
are envisaged for the expansion and improvement of drinking water, sanitation systems
and sewerage services in Ecuador, Peru and Uruguay. These projects will count on the
support of EIB, CAF, IDB and the World Bank Group.
•

In Ecuador, projects are implemented in the cities of Quito, Portoviejo and Guayaquil.
In Quito, the project will improve water service continuity, operational management,
and wastewater treatment capacity benefiting more than 61,000 households. In
Portoviejo, the objective is to expand access, provide climate-resilient services,
and improve management, including efficiency measures and expansion plans,
benefiting more than 20,000 households. In Guayaquil, the project addresses the
expansion and rehabilitation of existent wastewater pumping stations benefiting
more than 1.2 million people.

•

In Peru, the project will contribute to improving the quality and expanding the
coverage of drinking water and sewerage services in the southern area of the city of
Lima and will benefit 350,000 inhabitants of the districts of San Juan de Miraflores,
Villa María del Triunfo and Villa El Salvador. The action includes the construction of
29 drinking water reservoirs that will supply 287 units with 43,744 total household
connections (old and new) for drinking water and 44,076 sewerage connections.

INFORMAL MEETING OF ECONOMY AND FINANCE MINISTERS AND CENTRAL BANK GOVERNORS
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, 14-15-16 SEPTEMBER 2023

3/4

•

In Uruguay, the Arazati project consists of the design, construction, financing,
commissioning, and maintenance of a 200,000 m3/d net capacity water treatment
plant. The plant will use raw water from the Rio de la Plata in the Arazati Port
area. Once treated and purified, the water will be piped to the capital´s metropolitan
distribution system and to reservoirs located in the area known as Cuchilla Pereira.
The project also includes the construction of a freshwater reservoir to supply the
drinking water treatment plant during episodes of salinity.

5. Boosting rural development through the modernization of agriculture. Argentina´s
Provincial Agricultural Services Programme (PROSAP) implements a series of public
investment projects to facilitate the adaptation of agricultural production to market
demands and promote the increase of value added in the sector’s productive value
chains. This framework includes the modernization of irrigation systems and rural
infrastructure schemes (roads, electrification, internet connection, etc.), as well as
the adoption of technologies that promote economic profitability and environmental
sustainability, as well as increasing the adoption of product differentiation tools. IDB,
CAF, EIB and World Bank Group will be supporting these projects.
6. Hydrogen pathway to decarbonization. Chile’s full commitment to energy transition
and the objective of net carbon neutrality by 2050 is a driver for the exponential expansion
of Renewable Energy (Non-Conventional, mainly wind and solar). This includes the
development of green hydrogen projects, fed by solar plants in the North and wind
parks in the South. Most foreign investments in Non-Conventional Renewable Energy
are from EU companies. Team Europe has set a precedent in Chile by establishing
the Green Hydrogen Fund for Chile as a joint initiative, to promote the incipient green
hydrogen market in Chile, foster local supply chains and strengthen the potential for
green hydrogen exports to Europe, while considering the importance of a just energy
transition. CAF, IDB and the World Bank Group will be involved in the construction of
a Green Ammonia production plant and a portfolio of distributed generation projects.
7. Reinforcing energy transition and sustainable mining. This is a critical contribution
to strengthen a just energy transition, by supporting LitioMX to promote and manage
the sustainable development of lithium mining in Mexico and for the Federal Electricity
Commission to develop the necessary elements to promote the use of renewable
energies in both electricity generation and end uses (Plan Sonora). EIB, IDB, CAF, and
the World Bank Group will be involved in this project.
8. Developing sustainable public transportation for all. Two central projects will
promote the development of sustainable public transport in Bogotá (Colombia). First,
the Bogotá Metro Line 2 transport project aims to improve mobility, connectivity, and
air quality. It comprises tunnel, trench, and viaduct sections, and extends over 15.5 km,
linking with the existing First Line. The project is estimated to carry 233,000 passengers
per day. Second, a project to finance 175 electric buses with low carbon emissions that
will operate along 10 routes in the districts of Fontibón and Usme, in the city of Bogotá.
EIB, IDB, CAF, and the World Bank Group are involved in these projects.
9. Promotion of e-mobility in public transport. The EU is working with the Government
of Costa Rica on the electrification of public transport. Conversion of urban bus fleet to
electric: 40 public e-vehicles contributing to a reduction of 5000 CO2 ktons per year. This
project is an important aspect of Costa Rica’s ambitious National Decarbonisation Plan,
which mandates 70 percent of buses to be emissions-free by 2035 and 100 per cent
by 2050. IDB, CAF, BCIE and the World Bank Group will participate in these projects.

INFORMAL MEETING OF ECONOMY AND FINANCE MINISTERS AND CENTRAL BANK GOVERNORS
SANTIAGO DE COMPOSTELA, 14-15-16 SEPTEMBER 2023

4/4