(Updates with additional comments from minister starting from the sixth paragraph)
VINA DEL MAR, CHILE -(Dow Jones)- Chilean Minister of Finance Andres Velasco called on his regional counterparts to join forces in an effort to confront the global financial crisis.
In his opening comments at the Second Meeting of Finance Ministers of the Americas and Caribbean, Velasco said he hoped the ideas shared at the summit would have an "echo effect," in upcoming meetings of the Group of Eight leading industrialized nations and the Group of 20 industrial and developing countries.
"It is very important that in all these meetings the world hears loud and clear the concerns of Latin America and the Caribbean," he told his colleagues.
Velasco also said that the goal of the meeting is to "construct a shared vision that can continue to advance," and to "coordinate regulatory reform so that this type of crisis will not be repeated in the future."
The Friday meeting, held in the resort town of Vina del Mar, is the second such event following last year's gathering in Mexico to discuss regional responses to the global financial crisis.
After closed sessions with finance ministers from 21 different countries and representatives from multilateral institutions, Velasco, in his closing remarks to reporters, again emphasized the importance of the upcoming G-8 and G-20 meetings, adding that Chile would be acting as the "coordinator" of the region's economic agenda.
In this role, Chile will be organizing the suggestions regarding the region's economic priorities and delivering them to the region's members in the G-20 so that Latin America's needs can be understood by industrialized nations.
In his closing comments, Velasco also emphasized the importance of multilateral institutions, particularly the Inter-American Development Bank, whose board of governors met Thursday to discuss a proposal to increase its capital base in order to better assist countries in the region.
"Two or three years ago, people said that there was no longer a need for multi-lateral institutions," said Velasco, adding, "the crisis has shown that multi-lateral institutions are still an important source of finance and they will continue to play a role in the post-crisis world."
The World Bank has estimated that emerging market economies will require at least $300 billion annually to meet financing needs in the coming years.
-By Risa Grais-Targow, Dow Jones Newswires; 56-2-820-4244; chile@dowjones.com
Click here to go to Dow Jones NewsPlus, a web front page of today's most important business and market news, analysis and commentary: http://www.djnewsplus.com/access/al?rnd=%2BrFuX7rOcZgXqFaF7hQljA%3D%3D. You can use this link on the day this article is published and the following day.

Publié le 04 Juillet 2009 Copyright © 2009 Dowjones