However should not lose sight of the challenge to long term to harmonize economic growth with social progress the President Lula will speak on the topic implications of the global economic crisis in Latin America. The agenda of the meeting is based on the following themes: concrete responses to the crisis, building bridges among regions, integration, public policies for sustainable growth, and opportunities for a green development cycle. Indicates medioambienteonline.com, the President of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva opened the event with the theme consequences of the global economic crisis in Latin America.The program was created to generate critical mass to examine the way in which the region is responding to the economic crisis and is based on five pillars: the response of proactively to the economic downturn, the building relationships between regions; integration for the construction of a better future, public policies for sustainable growth and the challenges and opportunities for a green development cycle. The full program is available here. The co-chairs of the meeting is the high level of the companies at the World Economic Forum on Latin America: Jim Goodnight, CEO of SAS Institute, United States, Lord Levene, Chairman of Lloyd s of the United Kingdom, Marcelo Bahia Odebrecht, CEO of engineering and construction Odebrecht of Brazil and President of Grupo Odebrecht in Brazil, Ricardo Villela Marino, CEO for Latin America of Banco ItauUnibanco, Brazil, and Timothy P. Flynn, Chairman of KPMG International, KPMG, the United States. The Brazilian President and his peers Uribe and Fernandez travel later to Trinidad and Tobago to attend the Summit of the Americas, which will take place from 17 to 19 April, to also analyze the common challenges faced by the peoples of the continent to the global crisis.

The WEC for Latin America is organized by the Government of the State of Rio de Janeiro with the Brazilian Agency of promotion of exports and investments (Apex Brazil) which partnered last year with the Organization of the world economic forum to bring regional event to the country. We know the importance of having River in the Centre of the discussion of the global crisis and its implications for Latin America, that is why we decided to support the Forum, said Alessandro Teixeira, President of Apex Brazil. It should not be forgotten as stated in laprensagrafica.com, to the Economic Commission of Latin America United Nations and the Caribbean (ECLAC) revealed days ago a report which argued that the financial crisis will have a strong negative impact in the region, and will be reflected in an eventual decrease in foreign investment. The impact of the global crisis in the region, according to ECLAC, is linked to the scarcity of external financing and the magnitude of the problems of international trade. Experts from ECLAC pointed out that foreign direct investment in Latin America declined from 184,000 million dollars in 2007 to 89,000 million in 2008, and anticipated that they will decrease 50% additional to $ 43 billion in 2009. On the other hand, regional exports to foreign markets will fall 9 percent in 2009, according to ECLAC.