SOLIDAR travels to Santa Marta to demand a new model of EU-LAC trade partnership
The IV EU-CELAC Summit
On 9 November, leaders from the European Union (EU) and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) met in Santa Marta, Colombia, to celebrate the IV EU-CELAC Summit, an opportunity to reaffirm shared commitments and strengthen cooperation between the two regions. For this occasion, SOLIDAR flew to Colombia, where we spent a week participating and organising different activities, to promote our demands for a new biregional trade model that supports a global just transition toward low-carbon, inclusive, rights-based, and peaceful economies, aligned with climate justice, social equity, and sustainable development. The Summit had some positive elements as well as some shortfalls, and we now expect concrete actions as well as the setup of a multistakeholder mechanism to ensure accountability and follow-up of the process. Read here SOLIDAR analysis of the results of the Summit.
SOLIDAR network in Santa Marta
On the 7th of November, several SOLIDAR Members and partners in Latin America met for an in-country exchange, an opportunity to learn from each other, build synergies and cooperation among partners active in the region. The meeting allowed peer learning on wellbeing economies and inclusive societies, key elements to promote a just transition.
Reclaiming our space: the Civil Society Forum
Then, on the 7th and 8th of November, we joined the Civil Society Forum, organised by CSOs from EU and LAC, the European Commission DG INTPA and the Colombian government. During the Forum, participating CSOs drafted a Civil Society Declaration that incorporates several of the key demands and priorities we have long been advocating for, including binding clauses on human, labour and environmental rights in any trade, investment and Global Gateway (GG) agreements, reporting mechanisms and civil society involvement as strategic partners in the design and monitoring of such agreements, and the important point that the Global Gateway must complement rather than replace traditional ODA, while truly addressing local priorities beyond infrastructure. Finally, for the first time ever, two civil society representatives were invited to present our main demands at the official Summit. A small step that we would like to see scaled up in the next EU-CELAC Summit happening in Brussels in 2027.
Our vision for a new EU-LAC partnership
SOLIDAR main messages and advocacy demands for a new model of EU-LAC trade partnership were presented during a public event on the 8th of November, co-organised with FEPS, FES and OIDHACO, titled “EU-LAC Dialogue on Trade and Just Transition”, where different representatives from CSOs, Trade Unions, Indigenous Communities and Institutions debated and exchanged on the state of trade and investment relations between EU and LAC, and how they should be reformed to promote just transition and sustainable development. During the event, we launched and presented our joint Declaration for a Just Transition centred biregional partnership outlining concrete demands for EU–LAC trade and investments.
To get the full overview of what was discussed, please watch the full event recording, and read here the event report.
