Lima, March 4, 2005.- The importance of profiting from the experiences of the integration processes in moving ahead with the construction of the South American Community of Nations (CSN) was underscored today at the closing ceremony in Lima of the workshop organized by ECLAC and the Embassy of the United Kingdom, under the sponsorship of the CAN General Secretariat.

The Ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in Peru, Richard Ralph; the Executive Secretary of ECLAC, José Luis Machinea; the Secretary-General of the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization, Rosalía Arteaga Serrano, the Secretary General Elect of ALADI, Didier Opertti Badán, and the Andean Community Secretary General, Allan Wagner, were all in agreement on highlighting the lessons to be learned from the experiences of the CAN, Mercosur and the EU.

EU, CAN and MERCOSUR experiences in conflict resolution and other legal and institutional aspects were studied and compared in the Workshop on “Andean Community and European Union Experiences in Integration,” the first of this series having been held last year in Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Allan Wagner judged the results of this workshop to be "highly positive," for they will serve as the foundations for the South American Community of Nations to be constructed through the gradual convergence of the CAN and Mercosur.

He pointed out that the South American Presidents at their Cusco meeting established the three pillars on which the process will rest: political cooperation, economic integration, and infrastructure integration and development. The major guidelines that will determine the action plan to rapidly build the CSN already exist.

The most important point, according to Richard Ralph, is that South American integration lead to a reduction of poverty and inequality. He stated that although experiences cannot be copied automatically, Europe’s integration process has much to offer to those who are committed to building and reinforcing Latin America.

Rosalía Arteaga, for her part, voiced the need for the Amazon region to play an active part in the South American Community of Nations and emphasized that "the future of our countries will depend on how we deal with our biodiversity."

Didier Opertti stated that the CSN should be erected on already existing foundations and should take advantage of the accomplishments of the Andean Community and of MERCOSUR --for example the highly developed CAN dispute settlement system.

In comparing the experiences of the integration processes, José Luis Machinea drew attention to two important aspects: political will and social cohesion. "Political will and social cohesion are at the heart of the integration processes,” he emphasized.