The Minister for Foreign Affairs, European Union and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, called on Thursday, at the foreign ministers meeting before the Ibero-American Summit, to avoid polarisation because “it only serves to distract us from the work that we can and should be doing". “We owe it to our societies", he stressed, while emphasising that we should “not go back on some of the great consensuses reached over decades", such as “equality, sustainability and solidarity".
During the morning, Minister Albares also signed the Joint Commission Act that underpins the new Spain-Ecuador Country Partnership Framework 2024-2028 that will steer Spanish Cooperation in Ecuador over the next four years. In a meeting with his Ecuadorian counterpart, Gabriela Sommerfeld Rosero, also attended by the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation Director, Antón Leis García, Albares reiterated that Ecuador is a “priority country for our cooperation", as detailed in the Master Plan for Sustainable Development and Global Solidarity 2024-2027.
The Spain-Ecuador Partnership Framework (2024-2028) is a comprehensive roadmap to support the multidimensional challenges that Ecuador faces on its path towards sustainable development and improving the well-being of its population. This new Framework prioritises four main work areas: gender equality and the inclusion of vulnerable groups, the promotion of territorial rural development, climate action and ecological transition, and the quality and performance of Public Administration systems. After signing the Country Partnership Framework, which will receive an allocation of €101 million over the four-year period, Minister Albares and his counterpart signed an agreement to promote Spanish in international organisations.
Opening Ceremony
In the afternoon, Minister Albares closes the day by accompanying H.M. King Felipe VI to the Opening Ceremony of the XXIX Ibero-American Summit, in the auditorium of the Pumapungo Museum, which hosts the main Summit meetings and events.
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