The Summit of Heads of State and Government of CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States), energized by the full presence of all the leaders, started with a call to combat hunger, poverty and inequality.
Castro also warned of the threats to peace in the region and thanked the solidarity over the “the criminal blockade.” In this regard, he recalled the case of global espionage, that was uncovered in 2013.
On issues of poverty and inequality, Cuban President encouraged the countries of the region to exercise full sovereignty over their natural resources and reconsider their relationship with transnational companies.
According to ECLAC (Economic Commission for Latin America), poverty is still the main problem in Latin America.
Although it has been significantly reduced in recent years, poverty on the continent has fallen 15.7 percentage points since 2002 while homelessness has declined by eight points.
