A Venezuelan cabinet member resigned in recent days after authorities arrested his brother in connection to a banking scandal. Caracas shuttered seven small banks in recent weeks.

This year’s forum explored how the region is emerging from the global recession. Panelists looked at prospects for trade and business in the coming year.

Agreeing that Latin America has been one of the most resilient microfinance regions in the world, speakers in this November 19 panel discussed the effects of the current economic crisis on microfinance along with lessons learned and future challenges for the industry.

Peruvian President Alan García joined AS/COA on November 3 for the fourth annual conference in Lima, where speakers examined Peru’s economic successes in the face of a global financial downturn.

Leaders from the Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of the Americas met October 16 and 17 in Cochabamba, where they charted a course for implementing a virtual currency that could replace the dollar in commercial transactions. ALBA also imposed a blockade on Honduras.

As financial institutions work to attract the unbanked, effective programs must be better tailored and implemented as part of a long-term empowerment process, writes Qualitas of Life Exectuiver Director Adrián Franco.

This AS/COA Miami panel offers insights into how the economic crisis offers Mexico a chance to effect positive policy changes. Mexican Ambassador to the U.S. Arturo Sarukhan was a keynote speaker.