WILLEMSTAD - Minister Sithree van Heydoorn, on behalf of Minister of Economic Development, Ruisandro Cijnje, symbolically accepted Curaçao as the venue for the XXVII Conference of Economic Zones of Ibero-America in November 2024. The conference of the Association of Economic Zones of America (AFZA) gathers no less than 500 participants, all executives of economic zones from at least 25 countries in Latin America and Spain. Curaçao, through the Curaçao Industrial and International Trade Development Company N.V. (CURINDE), a member of AFZA, successfully convinced this significant organization in the economic zone world to hold its annual conference in Curaçao next year. Minister van Heydoorn accepted the flag as a symbol of the country where the conference will take place next year, expressed gratitude, and invited those present to be there next year in Curaçao.
CURINDE has been a member of AFZA since 2016. Economic zones in Latin America and Spain gather under AFZA. Every year, AFZA holds its annual meeting where topics of common interest for economic zone managers are discussed. Some of the topics discussed during the last conference included challenges and opportunities of artificial intelligence, the reality of the "Global Minimum Tax," and Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which provide opportunities for countries to create a better standard of living for citizens in their communities. The conference itself took place at DFactory Barcelona, an area created specifically for innovation companies established in the economic zone in Barcelona, which has been transformed into an innovation 4.0 center.
The Curaçao delegation that participated in the AFZA conference in Barcelona, alongside CURINDE, also consisted of Customs. Before the conference, they visited and became acquainted with the Logistics Activity Zone of the Port of Barcelona, which serves as Barcelona's logistics hub. There was also a meeting with representatives of the Ministry of Industry, Commerce, and Tourism in Barcelona, as well as the Director and Chief of the City Council of Barcelona. All of this was done with the goal of exploring possible cooperation.
Curaçao, through CURINDE, is now beginning the necessary preparations to organize a successful conference and showcase Curaçao and its possibilities to the more than 500 participants expected at the XXVII Conference of Economic Zones of Ibero-America.