The Diplomat
The Ministers of Culture of the Ibero-American countries have committed to boosting the cultural sector, considering it fundamental for the recovery from the multidimensional crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in Ibero-America.
This is the main conclusion of the XXI Ibero-American Conference of Ministers of Culture, held last Thursday virtually and organized by the Dominican Republic, as Pro Tempore Secretariat of the Ibero-American Conference, and the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB).
The meeting, inaugurated by the Dominican Minister of Culture, Milagros Germán; the Deputy Minister of Multilateral Foreign Policy of this country, Rubén Silié, and the Acting Ibero-American Secretary General, Marcos Pinta Gama, is part of the preparatory meetings for the Summit of Heads of State and Government, which will take place in the Dominican Republic in November 2022 and whose motto will be Together for a fair and sustainable Ibero-America.
During the Conference, participants recognized that culture and its industries have been strongly affected by the pandemic, but also stressed that “Ibero-American cooperation has been able to respond to this enormous challenge,” according to SEGIB in a press release. A good example of this is the Declaration agreed by consensus at the end of the meeting, in which the ministers commit to implement the Ibero-American Strategy for Culture and Sustainable Development, approved during the XXVII Ibero-American Summit of Heads of State and Government held last April in Andorra.
The Strategy defines the central role of culture in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and allows countries to measure the contribution made by their national and regional public policies to the fulfillment of that goal, especially in linking culture with employment, inclusion and social justice, gender equality, health and the environment, among others.
The Declaration also supports the creation of the Ibero-American Reciprocal Guarantee Fund as a measure that will contribute to the recovery of the cultural sector. This Fund, which will be financed by contributions from the countries, will make it possible to offer lines of credit for the development of cultural projects in the region.
