The first joint forum for Latin American ports by IAPH and OAS-CIP, hosted by the Administración Nacional de Puertos (ANP) of Uruguay in Montevideo, took place earlier this week. Over a day and a half, the program combined intense workshops with an interchange of ideas among participants from multiple countries in the region. The event, described as a “trunk show,” centered on presenting IAPH tools and initiatives that support sustainability and port innovation, while providing a practical environment for dialogue. According to the organizers, the entire forum was conducted in Spanish, aligning content and discussions with the linguistic context of the audience.
Held from 11 to 12 May, the forum featured tools and best practices around three core themes: climate and energy, risk and resilience, and data collaboration. The structure emphasized focused sessions designed to surface operational experiences and encourage peer learning. The combination of technical content and moderated exchange set a pragmatic tone, consistent with the “trunk show” approach used to demonstrate concrete instruments and initiatives. The format underscored sustained engagement, with participants dedicating a full day and an additional half-day to concentrate on these priority areas for ports in the region.
Regional forum spotlights sustainability, resilience, and data
The delegation was led by IAPH regional vice president for Central and South America Patel and regional IAPH representative Guimara Tuñón Guerra. It included IAPH’s Antonis Michail and Victor Shieh, as well as Data Collaboration Committee Chair Boqué Sastre of Port de Barcelona. Also participating was Caio Cunha of Porto do Açu. Together, they engaged directly with IAPH members drawn from Uruguay, Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Guatemala, and Peru. The mix of technical leadership and regional representation provided a diverse perspective on the challenges addressed by the agenda.
Interaction with members from six countries created a forum that reflected the regional breadth of Latin American ports. With sessions designed for exchange, participants discussed how tools and best practices could be applied across different operational contexts. The conversations were framed by the three topics highlighted by the organizers, supporting a consistent thread that connected sustainability imperatives, operational resilience, and the evolving role of information flows in port ecosystems. The setting in Montevideo provided a central venue for this engagement.
The event was hosted by ANP Uruguay and organized by Sabina Malnis with Viviana Techera of the Inter-American Committee on Ports (CIP) of the OAS, alongside ANP. The organizational structure placed the host port authority and the regional institutional framework at the center of delivery, ensuring the program maintained both local relevance and international association alignment. The emphasis on Spanish-language delivery was deliberate, facilitating direct participation by professionals and decision-makers from the attending countries without the need for interpretation.
As a “trunk show,” the forum maintained a clear focus on showcasing IAPH’s tools and initiatives. Rather than broad policy debate, the sessions concentrated on concrete instruments and practical experiences around climate and energy, risk and resilience, and data collaboration. This orientation toward applicability is consistent with the stated aim of presenting best practices, enabling participants to evaluate how approaches tested elsewhere might inform work under way in their own ports. The format balanced presentation with dialogue to support this exchange.
The selection of topics aligned the agenda with the immediate priorities of port authorities and operators. Climate and energy considerations frame the environmental and operational parameters within which ports function, while the risk and resilience focus addresses continuity under stress. In parallel, data collaboration recognizes the interdependence of port communities and the value of shared information. By bringing these strands together, the forum provided a coherent structure for examining how tools and practices interact across functions and jurisdictions in Latin America.
The Montevideo forum’s regional composition and the presence of IAPH technical leads contributed to the depth of the exchanges. Country participation from the Southern Cone, the Andean region, and Central America supported a range of operational realities in the discussions. Within that setting, the day-and-a-half schedule provided time for concentrated sessions and follow-up conversations. The result was a focused, Spanish-language program that presented IAPH initiatives while enabling members to discuss application pathways through direct, peer-to-peer interaction.
