The Andean Council of Foreign Ministers, considering that cities and municipalities are important for strengthening democracy and furthering development and bearing in mind that the balanced and harmonious development of the Andean countries is one of the objectives of the integration process, in May 2004 approved Decision 585, creating the Andean Advisory Council of Municipal Authorities (CCAAM). This gave Municipal authorities a role to play in the Andean Integration System by expressing their opinions and putting forward recommendations. 

The Andean Presidents welcomed the establishment of the Council and underscored the role it should play in promoting the participation of the municipalities and the regions in building up the integration process (Fifteenth Meeting of the Andean Council of Presidents, Quito Act, July 12, 2004).  They also pointed up the need to promote an exercise in joint reflection about a development model of their own that would include advancing a territorial development strategy through the idea of development centers as favorable spaces for the construction of democratic governance and social cohesion (Quito, Presidential Dialogue on the Future of the Andean Integration Process and its Projection in South America, July 12, 2004).

The Andean Advisory Council of Municipal Authorities (CCAAM) was installed in Lima on July 1, 2005.  Giving the cities a leading role in the decentralization of Community policies and launching an agenda of cooperation among local governments is a milestone in the Andean integration process. 

The key principles for constructing a cooperation agenda were identified as being: 

·  Participation in building an Andean vision of regional development and territorial competitiveness;

·  Development of the small and medium-size enterprise;

·  Strengthening of the Andean identity based on the many-cultured and multiethnic nature of our cities and societies;

·  Application of new communication and information technologies to reinforce the connectivity between Andean cities;

·  Exchange of experiences and good practices in municipal administration that involve the participation of civil society;

·  Execution of Community policies to support regional development and decentralization in order to strengthen Andean integration and build the South American Community of Nations; and

· Evaluation of financial mechanisms for promoting local development and social cohesion.