Past Fora

ACF 2007

The inaugural ACF was held in Atlanta and provided a venue for 900 government officials from the Western Hemisphere and leaders from the private sector, academia, trade missions and non-governmental organizations to explore cutting edge ideas in key areas of competitiveness.

Participants included:

• 3 U.S. Cabinet Secretaries: Secretary of Commerce Carlos Gutierrez, Secretary of Treasury Henry M. Paulson and Secretary of Education Margaret Spelling
  
  
• 3 Latin American Vice Presidents: Ana Vilma de Escobar of El Salvador, Jaime Morales Carazo of Nicaragua, and Kevin Casas Zamora of Costa Rica
  
  
• 21 economic and education Minister-level government officials from 21 Western Hemisphere nations
  
  
• Hundreds of representatives from the business community, academia, non-government and multinational organizations. Presidents and senior executives of 500 fortune companies also attended.
  
  

Four important drivers of national competitiveness were discussed at ACF 2007:

• Education and workforce development
• Innovation
• Small business development
• Global supply chain strategies

ACF 2008

ACF 2008 built on the success of the inaugural forum and provided a venue for more than 1,000 government officials and business leaders representing 26 governments in the Western Hemisphere.

Participants included:

• 3 Latin American Presidents: Alvaro Colom of Guatemala, Antonio Saca of El Salvador, Alvaro Uribe of Colombia, and Vice President Jaime Morales of Nicaragua
  
  
• 25 Minister-level government officials from 26 countries and hundreds of business leaders
  
  

Best practices and topics discussed included:

• Alliances in Business and Education
• Renewable Energy
• Trade Logistics
• Travel and Tourism in the Americas
  
  

ACF 2008 ATLANTA, USA: Visit Forum Web Site Here

ACF 2009



ACF III was held in Santiago, Chile and brought together over 700 representatives from the public and private sectors to discuss ways to spark innovation, create jobs and expand trade among the countries of the Western Hemisphere.

Participants included:

• 2 Latin American Presidents: H.E. Michelle Bachelete of Chile and Alvaro Colom of Guatemala
  
  
• 19 Ministers of trade and economy from throughout the region
  
  
• Hundreds of senior representatives from business and academia
  
  

Key topics discussed were:

• Energy and sustainability
• Financing in times of crisis
• Increasing the value of supply chain
• Entrepreneurship and workforce development
  
  

ACF 2009 SANTIAGO, CHILE: Visit Forum Web Site Here