ACTIVITIES AND STRUCTURE

Activities 

  • Every year, SELA holds the Latin American Council meeting at the ministerial level, and regularly convenes regional meetings for consultation and coordination with high-level officials of the Member States on issues of common interest within its areas of competence.
  • SELA organizes meetings of experts to deal with specific issues of the regional and global economic agenda, as well as forums with the participation of governmental and non-governmental representatives.
  • It maintains close cooperation relations with major inter-governmental organizations, public institutions and private agencies with a regional and international scope.
  • The organization holds seminars, courses and training workshops on economic and social issues of interest for Latin America and the Caribbean, aimed at high-rank government officials, entrepreneurs, workers, parliamentarians, academicians, and civil society organizations.

Structure 

  • The Latin American Council is the principal decision-making body of SELA. Each Member States has one (1) Representative to this Council, which meets regularly once a year. Its responsibilities include determining the institution's general policies and formulating specific declarations in the form of Decisions approved on a consensual basis.

  • The Permanent Secretariat is the technical administrative organ of SELA. It is headed by a Permanent Secretary, who is elected by the Latin American Council for a period of four years. The following are some its functions: to encourage and carry out preliminary studies and take the measures necessary to identify and promote projects of interest to two or more Member States; to propose to the Council programmes and projects of common interest and to suggest ways in which they may be carried out, including meetings of experts and other measures which may better contribute to the attainment of the objectives of SELA and to promote and conclude, subject to the approval of the Council, arrangements with international organizations and agencies, national agencies of Member States and third countries, to carry out studies, programmes and projects, especially those of a regional nature. 

  • The Action Committees are flexible cooperation mechanisms set up when more than two Member States voice interest in promoting joint programs and projects in specific areas. These Committees are dissolved once their objectives are fulfilled or they may become Permanent Bodies of the System.