Panama City, April 13, 2012 – The Government of Panama with the support of the United Nations System, coordinated by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), is organizing the Regional South-South Cooperation Fair, Knowledge from the South: Regional Exchange of Solutions to be held May 8-10, 2012. The Fair is meant to be a space in which Latin American and Caribbean countries will be able to share knowledge regarding social development policies and South-South Cooperation (SSC) mechanisms they have used.

¨In addition to showcasing, sharing and learning from successful South-South Cooperation experiences and solutions in the different countries of the region, this Fair also aims at fostering new agreements between countries which contribute to sustainable development, which also gives it a political dimension¨ stated Maximino Rodriguez, General Director in charge of Special Projects and International Cooperation of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Panama.

With that in mind, the Knowledge from the South is organized around three pillars. First, there will be a series of roundtables for knowledge exchange that will cover the four thematic areas of the Fair: social programs and social protection systems, fiscal policies to promote equity and social investment, participation, inclusion and public policies, and environment and disaster risk reduction. There will also be roundtables to exchange knowledge and to debate about the political, technical and technological mechanisms that catalyze the implementation of SSC processes.

¨Representatives of 20 Latin American and Caribbean countries will present and exchange information about a total of 33 successful SSC experiences. Broken down by thematic area, there will be 13 initiatives regarding social programs, 10 regarding citizen participation, four regarding fiscal policies, and six regarding the environment,¨ explained Freddy Justiniano, Director a.i. UNDP Regional Center for Latin America and the Caribbean.  

On the other hand, there will also be satellite events in which experts of different fields will analyze issues such as the challenges that academia faces in systematizing SSC experiences, the management of information systems and the priorities of the SSC agenda.

The third pillar is the physical exhibition of the selected experiences, for which there will be a display zone on the premises of the Fair. 

Knowledge from the South will take place in the City of Knowledge (Panama), a renowned campus that brings together bilateral and multilateral institutions, non-governmental organizations and organizations of knowledge and possesses the infrastructure and services necessary for an event of this nature. ¨Our Convention Center, where the event will take place, offers a unique environment so that the exchange of experiences and knowledge may take place in ideal conditions. We hope to offer the perfect framework for enriching debate¨, assured Jorge Arosemena, Executive Director of the City of Knowledge Foundation.

Representatives from governments, multilateral organizations, regional and sub-regional integration mechanisms, Civil Society Organizations and academia will participate in the event which will close with a final declaration outlining the acquired agreements for future cooperation in the region. 

Media contact:
María Fernández Ruiz de Larrinaga
Knowledge from the South Communications Officer
Telephone: 64179238
Email: maria.fernandez@undp.org
Web: www.saberdelsur.org

Note to the Editors:

Selected Experiences.