http://www.iadb.org/intal/ICom/30/eng/i_convocatoria.html

Physical Integration for the International Integration and Regional Connectivity of Latin America and the Caribbean

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Since the beginning of the 2000s, Central and South America have been making sustained efforts to physically integrate into their respective sub-regional territories and, at the same time, seeking to increase the integration of their trade, both in volume and value, into the global economy. As mentioned below, the Mesoamerica Project and the Initiative for the Integration of Regional Infrastructure in South America (IIRSA) have combined the efforts by the Governments in processes that have extended over a number of years. In the case of the Caribbean, even though physical integration has been the subject of attention by the countries that make up the region, in view of their geography and history it has not yet taken the shape of initiatives such as the above-mentioned processes.

Both in IIRSA and the Mesoamerica Project, the IDB has been encouraging the cooperation and dialogue process among the Governments through a variety of tools: the funding of projects with a high impact on physical integration, and technical studies on different topics —diagnoses of sectoral infrastructure, infrastructure regulatory design, project planning and development, territorial impact and productive chains, and strategic environmental assessment, among others.

The actions taken in both cases have shown positive results so far that materialize in projects under execution and in the application of agreements aimed at improving connectivity, reducing transport costs and facilitating trade.¹

The good strategic direction chosen has not gone unnoticed by analysts, and in many papers IIRSA and the Mesoamerica Project are considered an important model of cooperation for the development of regional physical integration.²

Furthermore, in 2008 the IDB published a report highlighting the impact of international transport costs on Latin America, and pointed out some distinctive attributes based on the characteristics of exported products and the various destination markets.³ It clearly follows from this report that the design of transport systems in their various forms, regulatory policies and relevant projects are of a strategic nature, especially considering their long-term consequences and their impact on the competitiveness of the regions.

Additionally, the experience learned from other latitudes —the European case is an obligatory benchmark— suggests that infrastructure implementation in the territory is a factor that may increase or decrease territorial disparities. Aware of this scenario, the MERCOSUR countries have created the Structural Convergence Fund (FOCEM, Fondo de Convergencia Estructural del Mercosur) aimed at developing investment projects to offset such asymmetries.⁴

The purpose of this call for papers is to analyze the different connectivity and physical integration aspects in countries of Latin America and the Caribbean and its sub-regions, with a view to publishing the selected papers in the Integration & Trade Journal. The Editorial Committee of the Journal shall choose those papers that address the range of questions arising on this matter.

By way of example, the following can be mentioned:⁵

1. What kind of role do infrastructure investment and regulatory policies play in leveraging the efficiency of the transport system in its various forms at a global level?
2. Which were the most significant investments in physical integration projects, and how can their impact and outcomes be measured?
3. What was the recent evolution of regional disparities at a subnational level and what was the role played by infrastructure and international trade with respect to such disparities?
4. In light of the evidence available on climate change and environmental sustainability, what elements should be taken into consideration in designing and planning physical integration infrastructure?
5. How much does the transport system in its various forms contribute to the global and regional integration of the countries? How are these dimensions reflected in national planning and policies?

The scope of study for the present submission of papers is wide, covering case studies, national and subnational experiences, and as mentioned above, a joint or individual analysis of each of the regions: the Caribbean, Mesoamerica and South America.