Statement by President Lula at the opening of the International Economic Forum – Latin America and the Caribbean 2026

My dear heads of State and heads of government. My dear friend José Raúl Mulino, president of the Republic of Panama. My dear friend, Sergio Díaz-Granados, Executive President of CAF [Latin American Development Bank]. Heads of State, heads of government, business leaders, and guests of this Latin America and Caribbean International Economic Forum.

It was with great joy that I accepted the invitation to take part in this event, as we, the presidents and leaders of Latin America, cannot afford to miss the opportunity to discuss matters of interest to our region.

I would like to begin by thanking the Executive President of CAF, Sergio Díaz-Granados, for the honor of being invited to participate in this opening session of the International Economic Forum – Latin America and the Caribbean 2026.

I would also like to take this opportunity to congratulate him on his reelection for a new term at the helm of CAF.

I would also like to thank my friend, President José Raúl Mulino, for his hospitality in welcoming us.

I salute all the heads of State and government that are here today, as well as the business leaders, and all the people, women and men, who are participating in this event.

This Forum is very timely, given the growing geopolitical, economic, and technological challenges the world is facing, particularly in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The choice of Panama City to host this event harbors special symbolism.

This is the true meeting point between the Atlantic and the Pacific.

Exactly 200 years ago, the Amphictyonic Congress, where the young American nations sought to consolidate their independence and define their place in the world, met here.

Many of the ideas that would later be expressed by modern international law and in the United Nations Charter itself emerged from this 1826 Congress.

Ideas such as the maintenance of peace; the peaceful settlement of disputes; the guarantee of political independence; the legal equality; and the territorial integrity of States.

Despite its significant symbolic weight, however, this normative and conceptual legacy was insufficient to foster effective regional institutions.

Two centuries have passed since the Panama Congress, and we are facing one of our greatest setbacks in terms of integration.

The brief UNASUR experiment between 2003 and 2014 succumbed to the weight of intolerance that prevented different views from coexisting.

We have gone back to being a divided region, more focused on the outside world than on itself.

We have allowed foreign conflicts and ideological disputes to be imposed on us.

The threats of political extremism and the manipulation of information have become part of our daily lives.

We go from meeting to meeting, full of ideas and initiatives that never get off the ground.

Our summits have become empty rituals that the main regional leaders do not attend.

As a result, the only organization that encompasses all the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, CELAC, is paralyzed, despite the efforts of our dear President Petro.

CELAC cannot even produce a single statement against the illegal military interventions that shake our region.

We have not been able to coordinate our response to systemic challenges such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are making slow progress in fighting transnational organized crime.

Efforts to curb global warming still require more robust, stronger collective action.

These challenges raise the question of a possible model of regionalism for Latin America and the Caribbean.

In a global context of disruption of the liberal order and resurgence of protectionism and unilateralism, the endogenous paradigms linked to Pan-Americanism and Bolivarianism are insufficient.

Nor can we rely on integration models that do not reflect our realities.

We should look to the European Union as a positive reference. But never ignoring all our historical, economic, and cultural differences.

The weight of national identities makes any project similar in scope to the European one unfeasible in the short term.

Geographical proximity to the world’s greatest military power is another unavoidable reference point, whether as a result of its presence or its distance, especially in a context of resurgent hegemonic temptations.

Regional leaders lack conviction about the benefits of adopting a more autonomous project for international integration.

Faced with the difficulties of agreeing on their own theoretical framework, our countries should focus on mobilizing the region’s untapped assets to promote its competitive integration into the global order.

We possess political and economic assets that can give substance to the drive for integration:

(i) we have energy potential related to oil and gas reserves, hydroelectricity, biofuels, and nuclear, wind, and solar energy;

(ii) we have varied soil and climate conditions, as well as scientific and technological advances for food production;

(iii) we are home to the largest tropical rainforest on the planet, more than one-third of the world's freshwater reserves, and an extremely rich biodiversity;

(iv) we have abundant mineral resources, including critical minerals and rare earths, which are essential to the energy and digital transitions;

(v) we harbour few border disputes;

(vi) we are a significant consumer market of 660 million people;

(vii) we do not experience serious religious or cultural conflicts; and

(viii) our governments are predominantly democratically elected.

Latin America and the Caribbean are unique. It is up to us to accept the fact that the only possible integration is the one that is based on a plurality of options.

Guided by pragmatism, we can overcome ideological differences and build solid and positive partnerships within and outside the region.

This is the only doctrine that suits us.

Staying divided makes us all more fragile.

My friends,

In a world shrouded in turmoil, Brazil has chosen the path of democracy, peace, multilateralism, and regional integration.

Our political, social, economic, fiscal, and legal stability has been recognized around the world.

Brazil has attracted record volumes of foreign capital over recent years.

We continue to promote fair and balanced international trade based on multilaterally agreed rules.

We respond to protectionist practices with dialogue, firmness, and support for our companies.

In 2025, we surpassed historic export and import records, with a trade flow of USD 629 billion.

This is the result of a consistent strategy of diversifying partnerships with traditional and emerging economies.

We have shown that a new model of development, based on inclusion and sustainability, is possible.

Since 2023, Brazil has grown above the global average, controlled inflation, and achieved the lowest unemployment rate in our history.

We have increased our minimum wage, raised workers' incomes, and brought tax justice to millions of Brazilians.

We have once again been removed from the FAO Hunger Map.

In two years, poverty has given way to social inclusion, and 17.4 million people have moved up the socioeconomic ladder in Brazil.

We are at the forefront of the green economy.

Ninety percent of our electricity matrix is renewable.

We are leaders in biofuels.

Our Ecological Transformation Plan has identified USD 90 billion in projects that will boost the green economy.

We will soon launch a Roadmap to gradually reduce our dependence on fossil fuels.

Since 2023, we have resumed our efforts toward regional integration, striving to expand and diversify our partners.

We have concluded agreements between MERCOSUR and Singapore, and between MERCOSUR and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).

Following 26 years of negotiations, we have signed the MERCOSUR-European Union agreement, which will cover a market of 720 million people and a GDP of USD 22 trillion.

We will expand our trade agreements with India and Mexico.

We have resumed talks with Canada and progressed in negotiations with the United Arab Emirates.

We have adopted frameworks to negotiate a strategic partnership with Japan and tariff preferences with Vietnam.

We hope to make rapid progress in negotiations with Panama, the Dominican Republic, and El Salvador.

We will also update MERCOSUR's agreements with Colombia and Ecuador.

Brazil is advancing rapidly in the implementation of its South American Integration Routes program.

We remain committed to working with all neighboring countries.

There are dozens of projects to improve highways, waterways, railways, ports, and airports, as well as information highways and transmission lines, with the potential to double intraregional trade in a few years.

Infrastructure integration has no ideology.

That is why Brazil defends the neutrality of the Panama Canal, which has been managed efficiently, safely, and non-discriminatorily for almost three decades.

Our Development Bank, BNDES, has been an essential partner, but integration requires more resources and more cooperation.

We must mobilize multilateral and regional banks, such as CAF, FonPlata, IDB, and the BRICS New Development Bank, to turn these initiatives into reality.

Through renewable energy generation, innovation, and digital connection projects, we can reposition Latin America and the Caribbean in the international economy.

Data centers, critical mineral processing, green industry, and the bioeconomy can all contribute to a more sustainable and inclusive development model.

We know that the economy does not exist in a vacuum.

The market is not an abstract entity, separate from politics and society.

Political and social stability are crucial for fostering a prosperous environment for business.

Wealth concentration generates poverty, hunger, and violence.

Latin America also holds the sad record of being the region with the highest number of femicides.

According to ECLAC, eleven Latin American women are murdered every single day.

This is not a battle for women alone. We men must join this fight and take responsibility for ending violence against women.

When people have dignity and security, society prospers.

Ensuring access to basic services and implementing policies to combat misinformation and crime are essential to stability and democracy.

For lasting and strategic regional integration, the engagement of subnational stakeholders, civil society, and the private sector is crucial.

Digital and innovative payment systems such as PIX, which we developed in Brazil, can boost regional trade.

Cooperation programs between universities and research centers create bonds based on knowledge and innovation.

Ladies and gentlemen,

History shows that the use of force will never pave the way to overcoming the ills that afflict this hemisphere, which belongs to all of us.

The division of the world into zones of influence alongside neocolonial attacks for strategic resources are anachronistic gestures and historical setbacks.

Among the many corollaries and doctrines that have been dedicated to us throughout history, there have also been moments when the United States has been a partner in promoting our development interests.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt implemented a “good neighbor” policy to replace military intervention with diplomacy in his foreign policy toward Latin America and the Caribbean.

Roosevelt also argued that we should build a world based on what he called the four fundamental freedoms for the defense of democracy and human rights:

First: freedom of expression, through which everyone can express their opinions freely, without the manipulation of data and information that we see today on digital media.

Freedom of worship: through which everyone can profess their faith without being persecuted.

Freedom from want: through which everyone has the right to a dignified life, including access to food, housing, and work.

And freedom from fear: through which disarmament would limit the use of force and aggression between nations.

To Brazil, the only war we need to wage in this part of the world is against hunger and inequality.

And the only weapons to be used are those of investment, technology transfer, and fair and balanced trade.

My friends,

Regaining confidence in integration is a challenging yet necessary task.

We possess exceptional economic, geographic, demographic, political, and cultural credentials, enabling us to aspire to a relevant presence in the global context.

We need leaders who are committed to institutional mechanisms that balance the different national interests of our region.

Regional integration can and should be nourished by principles and the critical examination of other historical experiences. But it will be the result of our ability to exist with the diversity of political wills.

This is an essential condition for maintaining Latin America and the Caribbean as a zone of peace and cooperation, governed by international law.

It will depend on our sovereign insertion in the world.

My friends, I will take two more minutes to say something I must tell you.

I took office as President of the Republic for the first time at the age of 57 in 2003. At that time, Brazil was deeply mired in a lost decade, with an unpayable foreign debt. Not even the resources to pay for its imports were available.

The directors of CAF know this, as Brazil received two IMF agents every year to correct its finances. When I took office, many friends in Latin America thought that Brazil could not succeed and that I would be unable to govern Brazil.

Well, what happened in Brazil is that we managed, for the first time, to bring about a social inclusion revolution and to ensure that things were better distributed within Brazilian society, putting poor people in the federal budget.

The poor cannot be treated as invisible. They do not exist only during election season. They exist every single day.

And every time we, as government officials, discuss the country, we must remember the poor, those who build the country's wealth.

So what happened to Brazil, which owed the IMF USD 30 billion? We paid off the IMF debt, built up an international reserve of USD 270 billion, lent USD 15 billion to the IMF, and my term ended with a 7.5% growth rate in 2010. We were producing 3.6 million cars a year.

When I returned in 2023, Brazil was growing at 1%; the automotive industry was producing only 1.6 million cars; inflation was out of control… And, for the first time since 2010, we went back to growth above 3% in 2023, 2024, and 2025. And we will continue to grow through the most inclusive social policy in our history.

We have the lowest cumulative inflation in four years of history; the highest number of people employed in history; the lowest unemployment in history; the highest wage bill in history; the highest exports in history; and we have a promising future, if we know how to work.

With one very simple thing that I said yesterday to the future president of Chile [José Antonio Kast]: a lot of money in the hands of a few means poverty; a little money in the hands of many means wealth.

This is the simple magic we need to do. And another important thing: everyone in the world today is talking about critical minerals and rare earths. Why do we talk so much about rare earths and critical minerals? So that we can continue to export raw materials, raw materials in their natural state, to be processed in other countries, and then purchase the processed goods at a high price? No. Critical minerals and rare earths only make sense to enrich our countries if we dare to build partnerships and have them processed within our countries. To generate wealth in our countries, to generate jobs in our countries, and to generate development in our countries.

I want to conclude by sharing some of the experiences of possibly the longest-serving president in the history of my country. No Latin American country can solve its problems alone. We already have 525 years of history. Not 525 days, but 525 years of history. We have been colonized, recolonized, gained independence, and continue to be colonized. Often, colonization is not about interference from others, but about the cultural formation of our people. We need to change our behavior. And we need to create a bloc. An economic bloc that can state that we are going to end hunger in these countries.

In 2014, my dear CAF president, you know, I took office with 54 million people going hungry. In 2014, we announced the end of hunger in Brazil and were recognized by the FAO. I was away for 15 years and, when I returned, 33 million people were hungry. In two and a half years, I ended hunger again.

So we must know that we, as elected leaders, were elected to govern in order to improve the lives of the people. Otherwise, there is no point in being president of the Republic. The challenge that lies before you, I will say from my heart, as if I were speaking to my brothers, is that there is no one, no country in the world, that will solve the problems of each country individually. It is we, the Chileans, the Argentinians, the Colombians, the Panamanians, the Venezuelans, the Hondurans. It is we who must have the will to solve our problems and make our countries rich. If we do not think this way, we will end this century as poor as we began it.

Thank you very much, and good luck.