Latin American Integration Association
The Latin American Integration Association / Asociación Latinoamericana de Integración / Associação Latino-Americana de Integração is an international and regional scope organization. It was created on 12 August 1980 by the 1980 Montevideo Treaty, replacing the Latin American Free Trade Association. Currently, it has 13 member countries, and any of the Latin American States may apply for accession.
Objectives
The development of the integration process developed within the framework of the ALADI aims at promoting the harmonious and balanced socio-economic development of the region, and its long-term objective is the gradual and progressive establishment of a Latin-American single market.Basic Functions
- Promotion and regulation of reciprocal trade
- Economic complementation
- Development of economic cooperation actions contributing to the markets extension.
General Principles
- Pluralism in political and economic matters;
- Progressive convergence of partial actions for the establishment of a Latin-American Common Market;
- Flexibility;
- Differential treatments based on the development level of the member countries; and
- Multiple forms of trade agreements.
Integration Mechanisms
- A Regional Tariff Preference applied to goods from the member countries compared to tariffs in-force for third countries.
- Regional Scope Agreements, those in which all member countries participate.
- Partial Scope Agreements, those wherein two or more countries of the area participate.
The ALADI includes in its legal structure the strongest sub-regional, plurilateral and bilateral integration agreements arising in growing numbers in the continent. As a result, the ALADI – as an institutional and legal framework or “umbrella” of the regional integration- develops actions in order to support and foster these efforts for the progressive establishment of a common economic space.
Member states
State Members | Join Date | Population | Land Surface | Exclusive Economic Zone | Platform | Capital City |
Founder | 40117096 | 2780400 km² | 1084386 km² | 856346 km² | Buenos Aires | |
Founder | 10426160 | 1098581 km² | Landlocked | Sucre & La Paz | ||
Founder | 190732694 | 8514877 km² | 3660955 km² | 774563 km² | Brasilia | |
Founder | 17094275 | km² | 3681989 km² | 252947 km² | Santiago de Chile | |
Founder | 45656937 | 1141748 km² | 817816 km² | 53691 km² | Bogotá | |
1999 | 11242621 | 110860 km² | 350751 km² | 61525 km² | Havana | |
Founder | 14306876 | 283561 km² | 1072533 km² | 41034 km² | Quito | |
Founder | 112322757 | 1972550 km² | 3177593 km² | 419102 km² | Mexico City | |
Founder | 7030917 | 406752 km² | Landlocked | Asunción | ||
2011 | 3405813 | 78200 km² | 335646 km² | 53404 km² | Panama City | |
Founder | 29885340 | km² | 906454 km² | 82000 km² | Lima | |
Founder | 3424595 | 176215 km² | 142166 km² | 75327 km² | Montevideo | |
Founder | 30102382 | 916445 km² | 860000 km² | 98500 km² | Caracas | |
Total: | 521213563 | 19651873 km² | 16214170 km² | 2839313 km² |
Accession of other Latin American countries
The 1980 Montevideo Treaty is open to the accession of any Latin-American country.On 26 August 1999, the first accession to the 1980 Montevideo Treaty was executed, with the incorporation of the Republic of Cuba as a member country of the ALADI.
On 10 May 2012, the Republic of Panama became the thirteenth member country of the ALADI.
Likewise, the accession of the Republic of Nicaragua was accepted in the Sixteenth Meeting of the Council of Ministers, held on 11 August 2011. Currently, Nicaragua moves towards the fulfillment of conditions for becoming a member country of the ALADI.
The ALADI opens its field of actions for the rest of Latin America through multilateral links or partial agreements with other countries and integration areas of the continent.
The Latin-American Integration Association also contemplates the horizontal cooperation with other integration movements in the world and partial actions with third developing countries or their respective integration areas.
Institutional Structure
;Council of Ministers of Foreign AffairsThe Council of Ministers is the supreme body of the ALADI, and adopts the decisions for the superior political management of the integration process.
It is constituted by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the member countries. Notwithstanding, when one of such member countries assigns the competence of the integration affairs to a different Minister or Secretary of State, the member countries may be represented, with full powers, by the respective Minister or Secretary. It is convened by the Committee of Representatives, meets and makes decisions with the presence of all the member countries.
;Evaluation and Convergence Conference
It is in charge, among others, of analyzing the functioning of the integration process in all its aspects, promoting the convergence of the partial scope agreements seeking their progressive multilateralization, and promoting greater scope actions as regards economic integration. It is made up of Plenipotentiaries of the member countries.
;Committee of Representatives
It is the permanent political body and negotiating forum of the ALADI, where all the initiatives for the fulfillment of the objectives established by the 1980 Montevideo Treaty are analyzed and agreed on. It is composed of a Permanent Representative of each member country with right to one vote and an Alternate Representative. It meets regularly every 15 days and its Resolutions are adopted by the affirmative vote of two thirds of the member countries.
;General Secretariat
It is the technical body of the ALADI, and it may propose, evaluate, study and manage for the fulfillment of the objectives of the ALADI. It is composed of technical and administrative personnel, and directed by a Secretary-General, who has the support of two Undersecretaries, elected for a three-year period, renewable for the same term.
, ALADI's site.
Secretaries General
- 1980-1984 Julio César Schupp
- 1984-1987 Juan José Real
- 1987-1990 Norberto Bertaina
- 1990-1993 Jorge Luis Ordóñez
- 1993-1999 Antônio José de Cerqueira Antunes
- 2000-2005 Juan Francisco Rojas Penso
- 2005-2008 Didier Opertti
- 2008-2009 Bernardino Hugo Saguier-Caballero
- 2009-2011 José Félix Fernández Estigarribia
- 2011-2017 Carlos Álvarez
- 2017- Alejandro de la Peña Navarrete