The Diplomat
Representatives of the Ibero-American Federation of Young Entrepreneurs-FIJE, the Council of Ibero-American Entrepreneurs-CEIB and the Ibero-American General Secretariat, committed to strengthening a joint roadmap of commitment to Ibero-America, during the first CEIB-FIJE Congress, under the slogan “It’s our time: + Ibero-America”, held on Wednesday in Madrid.
At the Congress, which was held to coincide with the 15th anniversary of the FIJE, its president, Matías Fernández, advocated forging strategic alliances in these times of change, in which young people, he said, must continue to play an increasingly important role.
For his part, the first vice-president of CEOE and president of CEIM, Miguel Garrido, called for measures to improve the competitiveness and productivity of companies, essential to strengthen the welfare state and growth in the region.
During the conference, topics of great interest for the region were addressed, such as MSMEs, open innovation and digitalisation, the importance of formal work, the orange economy or sustainable tourism and gastronomy. “All of them undoubtedly refer to the fundamental lines of work that we develop together from our institutions”, said the permanent secretary of CEIB, Narciso Casado.
He was joined in his words by the head of Economy and Business at SEGIB, Jaume Gaytán, who called for “strengthening even more if possible the close relationship between CEIB, SEGIB and FIJE, in this great community that is Ibero-America”.
During the event, public-private collaboration was also considered essential to ensure that the initiatives prosper and that they can be properly monitored from the business sphere.
The forum, which was attended by more than 190 young people from 19 Ibero-American countries and experts in essential matters for companies, included, among other authorities, the State Secretary for Digitalisation and Artificial Intelligence, Carme Artigas; the Councillor for Tourism of Madrid City Council, Almudena Maillo; the former Vice-Minister of Orange Economy and Culture of Colombia, Felipe Buitrago; and the Executive Director of the World Tourism Organization, Natalia Bayona.
Also participating were representatives of important institutions and business organisations, such as the vice-president of CEOE and president of ATA, Lorenzo Amor; the manager for Europe, Asia and the Middle East of the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), Ignacio Corlazzoli; the president of ICO, José Carlos García de Quevedo; the president of CEAJE, Fermín Albadalejo; the secretary general of CEPYME, Luis Aribayos; and the president of the Global Institute for the Future of Tourism; as well as representatives of leading companies in the region.
Con ocasión de la celebración del Foro, se conoció que la Asamblea General de Presidentes de las Asociaciones de Jóvenes Empresarios de Iberoamérica votó de manera unánime por la reelección de Matías Fernández como presidente de FIJE y aprobó el nombramiento de Narciso Casado como Presidente de Honor del Consejo de Asesores.
