The Council of the Americas held the 38th Annual Washington Conference on the Americas on May 6 and 7, drawing together a selection of the region's most influential officials—including the presidents of the United States and Panama—to address the most pressing policy issues affecting the Western Hemisphere. Read more and access program summaries, as well as audio, from the conference.

Speaking at the 38th Washington Conference on the Americas, IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn called for increased private and public investment and greater productivity as key factors for sustaining recent economic growth. A rebalancing of China’s exchange rate and policies to reduce the growth in food prices will be some of the next challenges facing the region and the world.

U.S. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson

Latin America is “at a crossroads” marked by the struggle between competing futures, according to Colombian Minister of Defense Juan Manuel Santos. This clash will shape internal and external geo-politics for years to come, forcing the United States to pay close attention to engagement with its friends.

COA was honored to name Representative Gregory W. Meeks with the Chairman's Award for Leadership in the Americas at the opening of the annual Washington Conference. After accepting the speech, the congressman urged trade liberalization advocates to help add more voices "to the chorus singing the praises of global trade."

At the Miami launch of the latest issue of Americas Quarterly, a panel moderated by Miami Herald columnist Andrés Oppenheimer examined Latin American social mobility and hemispheric trade policy, as well as Cuba’s economic outlook following Raúl Castro’s accession.

AS/COA’s second microfinance roundtable discussion provided an opportunity to discuss challenges and opportunities for expanding its outreach in Latin America. The sector has favored a commercial approach as Latin American microfinance moves beyond the distribution of loans.