MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Paraguay holds the chair of Unasur as of next October 29

President Fernando Lugo will be hosting the Ibero-American summit

Paraguay will be receiving the pro-tempore chair of Unasur (Union of South American Nations) from Guyana next October 29 during the Ibero-American summit which will be taking place in Asuncion.

The Unasur chair rotates annually among the group’s members based on alphabetical order. The headquarters of Unasur are in Quito, Ecuador, which holds the ratification instruments of the Unasur charter originally signed in Brasilia on 23 May 2008.

Paraguay formalized its membership last 15 September, when Foreign Affairs minister Jorge Lara formally deposited the ratification instrument singed by President Fernando Lugo.

With Paraguay’s ratification the only country missing is Colombia which completed the ratification process last August completed the membership requirements but still has to make the formal delivery of the instruments in Quito.

In April 2007 during a meeting in the Margarita Islands, Venezuela, it was decided to adopt the name of Unasur and its permanent seat the city of Quito. Unasur is made up of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guyana, Paraguay, Peru, Surinam, Uruguay and Venezuela