Peru To Host 2011 Congress Of Latin American Ports

Peru's national ports group, ENAPU S.A., in partnership with the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) and the Peruvian government, will sponsor the international seaport association's XX Congress of Latin American Ports in Lima, June 22-24. The title of this year's ports congress is Challenges for Latin American Ports: Competitiveness and Efficiency to Adjust to the New International Economic Scenario.

Peru's Minister of Transportation and Communications, Enrique Cornejo, and his counterpart in the Port Secretariat of the Office of the President of Brazil, José Leonidas de Menezes Cristino, will open the event with their respective keynote addresses. Each will describe his country's policies regarding investment in port infrastructure and development, a subject that is of great interest to the port industry, including businesses that provide goods and services to the industry.

Improving freight mobility and enabling a nation's seaports to be more efficient, productive and secure are the best investments a country can make to strengthen its economy, said Kurt Nagle, AAPA's president and CEO. The goal of this conference is to provide Latin American seaport industry officials and their hemispheric port partners a forum to exchange ideas, share lessons learned and benefit from the collective knowledge of the industry.

The meeting of port executives from throughout the Western Hemisphere will address a host of compelling industry topics, such as: The World Economy and the Proposal for the Development of Latin American Ports; Sustainability of Latin American and Caribbean Ports; Strategies of Global Port Operators and of Shipping Lines; Port Security; Positioning and Consolidation of the COAS HUB; and a panel discussion on the subject of financing sources for ports.

The business program will be supplemented with other activities, including presentations by port service providers. These activities are being organized to promote interaction, sharing of best practices and strengthening the integration of port logistics at the global level.

Interest is running high over the participation of the many prominent speakers and guests, among them (in alphabetical order):

• Larry Boorstein, Project Manager, Principal Economist Planner, AECOM, USA
• Robert Bosman, General Manager Terminal - Investments & Projects Central & South America - APM Terminals, USA
• J. Katherine Downs, Principal Investment Officer, International Finance Corporation (IFC), World Bank Group (among others), USA
• Tom Degrieck, Project Manager Jan De Nul Group, Belgium
• José Luis Estrada, Director (and expert in port planning and management), Estrada Port Consulting, Barcelona, Spain
• Paul Kent, Vice-President, Infrastructure Planning and Port Specialist, Nathan Associates Inc., USA
• Juan Kuryla, Deputy Director, Port of Miami, USA
• Jorge Madorrell Blasco, Director, Ports Practice for Euromed & South America, BNP Paribas, France,
• Johan Ohlsson, Manager, Center for Maritime and Logistics Competition, Securitas Group, Sweden
• José Luis Qwistgaard, Director General, Aquatic Transport, Ministry of Transportation and Communications of Peru
• Othón Pérez, Director General, Bureau of Port Development and Administration, General Coordination of Ports and Merchant Marine, Mexico
• Franc Pigna, Director, AEGIR Port Property Advisors, USA
• John Price, Director General of Business Intelligence, Kroll (risk consultants), USA
• Rodolfo Sabonge, Vice President, Office of Market Research and Analysis, Panama Canal Authority; Panamá
• Ricardo Sánchez, Head, Infrastructure Services Unit, Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Chile
• Jorge Ernesto Sánchez Ruíz, General Coordinator of Performance Evaluation, Portos do Brasil, Brazil
• Gonzalo Santillana, General Manager, MSC, Perú
• Carlos Urriola, Senior Vice President, Carrix, Inc., Panamá
• Carlos Velez, Regional Director for Latin America, American President Lines (APL), USA
• Julián Villalba, Coordinator, Port Programs, Andean Development Corporation (CAF), Venezuela
• Robert West, Director for Ports, Coastal and Maritime Infrastructure and Environment, Latin America and the Caribbean, Worley Parsons Group, USA
• Mike Zampa, Vice President for Corporate affairs, Neptune Orient Lines (NOL), Singapore

Visit http://www.congresopuertosperu2011.com/ for detailed information in Spanish, English and Portuguese about the XX Congress of Latin American Ports program, which will take place at Lima's JW Marriott Hotel, in the District of Miraflores, with a spectacular view of the Pacific Ocean. The web site includes information on pre- and post-event tours.

About AAPA

Founded in 1912, AAPA today represents 160 of the leading seaport authorities in the United States, Canada, Latin America and the Caribbean and more than 300 sustaining and associate members, firms and individuals with an interest in seaports. As a critical link for access to the global marketplace, each year, Western Hemisphere seaports generate trillions of dollars of economic activity, support the employment of millions of people and, in 2008, imported and exported more than 7.8 billion tons of cargo, valued at $8.6 trillion, including food, clothing, medicine, fuel and building materials, as well as consumer electronics and toys. The volume of cargo shipped by water is expected to dramatically increase by 2020 and the number of passengers traveling through our seaports will continue to grow. To meet these demands, the AAPA and its members are committed to keeping seaports navigable, secure and sustainable.