The First Regional Conference for Latin America and Caribbean of the International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration - IASIA

In December 2011, in Rio de Janeiro, the International Association of Schools and Institutes of Administration (IASIA), the Fundação Getulio Vargas (FGV), Brazil, and the Tecnológico de Monterrey (ITESM), Mexico, held the 1st IASIA Latin America and Caribbean Regional Conference, which central theme was Administration for Development: challenges for implement regional integration policies.
Accordingly, the Conference has intended to discuss, with emphasis on aspects of public management, the concept and operation feasibility of bilateral and multilateral agreements, concerning to regional projects. The Conference has also contemplated the emergence of supranational institutionalities, and the shared public policies resulting from them, whereas the leading or inhibitor role of the national and local public administrations in the process of implementation such policies.

The focus of the Conference, therefore, sought to transcend the more commonly debated fundamental perspectives – those of the international relations and of the foreign trade -  and target the challenges of management, the convergent or divergent points among public policies, business strategies,  and social movements, considering the systemic change efforts.

The four thematic axes were discussed by the twenty one speakers, from nine countries – six Latin American ones. The speakers represented their academies, think tank institutions, governments, multi-national companies, NGO’s, and regional multi-lateral international organizations.
Namely, the four axes were: Infrastructure and regional integration; Social policies and integration; Local Governments and Regional Integration and Strategic Integration (defense and security).

Important contributions concerning other regions’ experiences were added by Ludmila Gajdosova, from Slovakia, Executive Director of the NISPAcee and the Vice President of IASIA for Regional Organizations, by Allan Rosenbaum - member of the Board of Directors of both IASIA and the American Society for Public Administration – ASPA - and by Paul Collins, honorary editor of the magazine Public Administration and Development, from the British Commonwealth.

Extraregional contribution to the specific panel was offered by Ludmila Gajdosova, Executive Director of NISPAcee, headquartered in Slovakia. The expert on public administration stressed the positive impact that EU membership has generated in the countries most recently aggregated, although challenges to the stability of regional integration are present. One of them, revealed by experience, is to meet the need to take into account the specificities of each of the countries involved.
As to infrastructure, Ludmila also considers it fundamental for attracting foreign investment and contribute to economic growth in the environment of integration. She warns, however, to the levels of requirement that such projects demand from the institutional mechanisms of regional and national governance, from the organizational performance to high and special care for with the procurement function.

Final report, panels presentations’ materials, once authorized by the lecturers, will be made available at www.iasia2011.com.