Alberto Brunori, Executive Director of the EU-LAC Foundation, is visiting Costa Rica from 29 to 31 July to promote the country's ratification of the organization's constitutive agreement, a move that would strengthen San José's role in bi-regional cooperation between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean. During his stay, Brunori is scheduled to meet with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship and with the Permanent Special Commission on International Relations and Foreign Trade of the Legislative Assembly. The visit underscores the Foundation's aim to consolidate Costa Rica's participation in the governance of the organization, which currently counts ratifications from all 27 EU member states and 22 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The EU-LAC Foundation, based in Hamburg, Germany, was created in 2010 by heads of state and government of the EU and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) to strengthen the bi-regional partnership through multi-stakeholder dialogue, knowledge generation, participation in international forums, and training programs. It acquired the status of an international organization on 17 May 2019, when its constitutive agreement entered into force. Brunori highlighted that Costa Rica has been an active partner, benefiting from initiatives such as the participation of Costa Rican diplomats in the EU-CELAC Young Diplomats Training Program, the presence of national representatives in research networks, meetings of think tanks, and high-level dialogues, as well as the organization of multi-stakeholder forums in San José that have brought together authorities, academia, civil society, and the private sector.
The Foundation's work is guided by the priorities and agreements reached in high-level EU-CELAC spaces, including the Brussels Declaration (2023) and the 2023–2025 Roadmap. Its focus areas include democracy, human rights and the rule of law, gender equality, climate change, environment and financing, and security and illicit economies. Ratification by Costa Rica would allow the country to have a more direct voice in the Foundation's governance, aligning with its historical commitment to the bi-regional strategic partnership. The visit comes as the Foundation continues to expand its activities, promoting joint responses to shared challenges and fostering mutual understanding between the two regions. No specific timeline for the ratification process was announced during the visit, but the meetings with legislative and executive authorities suggest that the issue is being actively discussed in San José.