Presentation of the Latin American Economic Outlook 2011 in Madrid

The Latin American Economic Outlook 2011 was presented in Madrid on 13 December 2010, at a seminar hosted by Casa de América. High-level representatives from the Spanish public and business sectors were invited to comment on the two main topics of this year's Outlook: the reaction of Latin American economies to the crisis and the role of their emerging middle classes in development.
 
After opening speeches by Enrique Iglesias, Ibero-American Secretary General (SEGIB) and Gonzalo García, General Director for International Finance at the Spanish Ministry of Finance and Economy, Jeff Dayton Johnson, Head of the Americas Desk at the OECD Development Centre, presented a macroeconomic overview of the region. This first session, which focused on the impact of the crisis on Latin American economies and their prospects for 2011, also benefitted from the participation of Enrique Alberola Ila, Executive Coordinator for International Affairs at the Bank of Spain and José Juan Ruiz, Chief Economist and Director for Strategy and Analysis for Latin America at Banco Santander. The debates were moderated by Federico Poli, Director of the Economic Division at SEGIB.
 
The second session focused on households in the middle of the income distribution in Latin America - the middle sectors - and their contribution to development. The main findings of the Latin American Economic Outlook 2011 were presented by Mario Pezzini, Director of the OECD Development Centre, and commented by José Luis Escrivá, Chief Economist at BBVA and Antonio Fernández Poyato, Director of FIIAPP. The debates were animated by Juan José Marcos Guillén, Journalist at Diario Expansión. The seminar ended with an address by Cristina Narbona, Ambassador of Spain before the OCDE, and Soraya Rodriguez, Spain's Secretary of State for International co-operation. 

• Presentation by Jeff Dayton-Johnson, OECD Development Centre
• Presentation by Enrique Alberola Ila, Bank of Spain
• Presentation by José Juan Ruiz, Banco Santander

What role for middle sectors in development in Latin America?

• Presentation by Mario Pezzini, OECD Development Centre
• Presentation by José Luis Escrivá, BBVA
• Presentation by Antonio Fernández Poyato, FIIAPP