Márcia Wonghon
Reporter - Agência Brasil

Recife - The business potential inherent in the socioeconomic diversity of the Latin American countries will be demonstrated to European entrepreneurs and government, university, and research institute representatives at the III Connect, which, Wednesday (16) until Friday (18), is bringing together more than 150 representatives of 16 countries in Recife, in Northeastern Brazil.

The event, organized by the International Business Center of the Pernambuco Federation of Industries (Fiepe), is designed to strengthen cooperation between the countries of the European Union and Latin America. To accomplish this, the hope is to strengthen the Al-Invest program, which, since its inception by the European Commission in 1994, has benefitted 30 thousand firms from all commercial sectors.

According to Paulo Gustavo Cunha, vice-president of the Fiepe, business rounds will be held during the two days. "These initiatives are not meant for buying and selling but to identify economic cooperation opportunities between the two regions," he says. He pointed out that the projects can receive up to 80% of their financing from the European Commission.

The representative of the Brazilian government is Manuel Fernando Louzada Soares, director of technological policies in the Ministry of Development, Industry, and Foreign Trade. He said that the encounter should produce strategic alliances to concretize business deals for micro and small firms.

"We hope that a growing number of firms from Europe and Latin America can set up exchanges for a variety of purposes, aimed at helping improve competitiveness in the global market," he observed.

Translation: David Silberstein