Paraguayan Deputy Rodrigo Gamarra, in his capacity as President of the Mercosur Parliament (Parlasur), participated in the 22nd ParlAmericas Assembly in Ottawa, Canada, and held bilateral meetings with multilateral organizations to promote regional integration and international cooperation.
In one of the meetings, Gamarra spoke with Juan Fernando Londoño, an advisor linked to CAF – Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean. During the meeting, they highlighted the importance of strengthening the existing agreement between CAF and Parlasur. “CAF is one of the few multilateral organizations that supports regional parliaments in training, institutional strengthening, and technical cooperation. There is a willingness to expand this joint work,” the parliamentarian stated.
Gamarra also met with Michelle Muschett, UN Assistant Secretary-General and Regional Director of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) for Latin America and the Caribbean. The two discussed topics such as democracy, governance, and regional development. The Parlasur President invited Muschett to participate in a forum or activity in Paraguay or within the scope of Parlasur later this year, and progress on a joint agenda was agreed upon.
The deputy highlighted Paraguay’s democratic stability, mentioning a period of institutional predictability and external confidence, strengthened by the international leadership of President Santiago Peña. “We exchanged views on the challenges facing regional democracies, especially in the face of corporate sectors and economic conglomerates that use media structures as mechanisms to pressure governments and public institutions,” he declared.
Gamarra described the meetings as “very fruitful” and said they could lead to better future agreements between Mercosur, Canada, ParlAmericas, and the rest of the world.