Ibero-American and Caribbean Forum on Best Practices
Welcome

An initiative to promote the exchange of lessons learned from Best Practices in the Latin American and Caribbean region, the Ibero-American and Caribbean Forum was established in 1997 and is supported by the Government of Spain.

• Background
• Meeting Reports
• Forum's Newsletter-2002
• Municipality of Rosario (PDF)
• CAIXA Award Ceremony
• Calendar of Events

For more information, please contact:
UN-Habitat Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean
Av. Presidente Vargas, 3131/1304
20210-030 Rio de Janeiro,
Brazil
Tel: (55 21) 515-1700
Fax: (55 21) 515-1701
Email: portal@habitat-lac.org

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Background
During the preparatory process for the second United Nations Conference on Human Settlements - Habitat II, the Government of Spain decided to support the establishment of an Ibero-American and Caribbean Forum on Best Practices.
The first meeting for the establishment of the Forum was convened by the United Nations Human Settlements Programme and hosted by the Brazilian Institute for Municipal Administration (IBAM) on May 19-20 1997, in Rio de Janeiro.

Objectives
The first meeting concluded that the Forum should:

• Promote, from a social, economic and environmental perspective, the deeper understanding and evaluation of Best Practices, the improvement of information dissemination and stimulate and increase transfers throughout the region, employing the participation and use of all actors and existing networks involved in sustainable development;

• Establish a framework for communication and co-ordination of programmes and activities underway in the region which have similar objectives to those of the Forum;

• Identify and support information, capacity-building and transfer initiatives for practices which promote a more sustainable future for human settlements;

• Identify and mobilise resources at the regional, national and local levels for transfer initiatives and assist promoters of Best Practices to mobilise and identify resources and procure funds;

• Collaborate in the development of the activities of the Best Practices and Local Leadership Programme (BLP) through the dissemination of its knowledge and through support of programmes for the collection and evaluation of Best Practices.

Sub-regional Meetings
Five sub-regional meetings were held throughout 1997 to discuss implementation at the local level:
Mexico, Central America and the Spanish-speaking Caribbean
Mexico City, Mexico, 29 September - 1 October 1997
Organizer: Centro de la Vivienda y Estudios Urbanos (CENVI)

Andino Group
Santa Fe de Bogota, Colombia, 22-24 October 1997
Organizer: Fundación Habitat-Colombia

Cono Sur
Cordoba, Argentina, 3-5 November 1997
Organizer: El Agora

Non-Spanish speaking Caribbean
Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago, 16-18 November 1997
Organizer: University of the West Indies (UWI)

Brazil
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 17-19 November 1997
Organizer: Brazilian Institute for Municipal Administration (IBAM)

A final evaluation meeting was held 24-26 November 1997 in Cali, Colombia, and produced an action plan for 1998.

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Meeting Reports
Meeting for the Establishment of the Ibero-American and Caribbean Forum on Best Practices
19-20 May 1997, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Sub-regional Meeting for Central America and the Spanish-speaking Caribbean
Mexico City, Mexico, 29 September - 1 October 1997

Sub-regional Meeting for the Andino Group
Santa Fe de Bogota, Colombia, 22-24 October 1997

Sub-regional Meeting for Cono Sur
Cordoba, Argentina, 3-5 November 1997

Sub-regional Meeting for Non-Spanish speaking Caribbean
Port of Spain, Trinidad & Tobago, 16-18 November 1997

Sub-regional Meeting for Brazil
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, 17-19 November 1997

Final Evaluation Meeting
Cali, Colombia, 24-26 November 1997

Regional Meeting [Portugese]
Florianopolis, Brasil, 23-26 September 1998

Regional Meeting
Bogota, Colombia, 19-21 October 1998

Forum Secretariat Report to the Steering Committee [Spanish]
Activity Report, April 1999