Latin America is traditionally a strategic destination for Spanish companies. The turn of the 21st century brought with it a boom period, although the continent is now at a turning point, caused by concern over political instability. However, it is evident that for Spanish companies, Latin America is still a priority market, as seen in the recent report on Panorama of Spanish Investment in Latin America published by the Instituto de Empresa (IE), which concludes, among other things, that the 77% of Spanish corporations in the region can be expected to increase their investment over the coming months.

In this regard, the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) has made a global appeal warning of the economic crunch occurring in Latin America in 2016 ( for a second consecutive year) partly based on incentivising change in national tax structures, as explained in its 2016 Economic Study. Key objectives include the need to fight against tax evasion and avoidance, and the promotion of public-private partnerships to help challenge external funding to solid development targets.

These points not only fit the prospective short term growth estimated in the region, but they also make strategic sense for the future as they are aligned with the objectives agreed at the 36th Session of ECLAC. Promoting transparency in overseas investment processes or encouraging equality are some of the tools agreed to be developed by 2030, in order to meet development targets, particularly those dealing with sustainable development.

As a representative of a company with interests in Latin America, one of the most important criteria when materialising investment is for the project to offer all legal guarantees and have the potential to become a long-term partnership, which will facilitate more efficient implementation of a company’s know-how for a mutually beneficial relationship, something that I also discuss in this article on the outlook for gas in Latin America.

Along these lines, in September I had the opportunity to attend a forum organised by El País newspaper in New York, where I was a speaker on the panel on “Sectors in the Global Economy”. Like the other panellists, I stressed the need to prioritise strengthening the entry of investment capital in Latin America as one of the main drivers behind opportunity for growth for Spanish businesses.