Latin America

• Thursday, May 28th 2009 - 06:50 UTC

  Paraguay confirmed as free of FMD with vaccination

  

  Paraguay, Colombia and Bolivia have been confirmed to the list of countries declared free of foot and mouth disease with vaccination at the current World Organization for Animal Health (OIE) 77th session in Paris.

• Thursday, May 28th 2009 - 06:27 UTC

  Foreign Direct Investment in Latam could plunge up to 45%

  

  Foreign direct investment (FDI) in Latin America could plunge up to 45% this year as the global financial crisis stalls capital flows and shrinks the region's economy by more than 0.3%, warned the United Nations Economic Commission on Latinamerica and the Caribbean, Cepal.

• Thursday, May 28th 2009 - 06:18 UTC

  OAS taskforce to evaluate re-admission of Cuba

  

  The Organization of American States (OAS) moved Wednesday to create a taskforce to evaluate various proposals to readmit Cuba into the body, in the face of disagreements on the subject.

• Wednesday, May 27th 2009 - 06:20 UTC

  'They told me I don't have the right to make any political comments'

  

  Peruvian journalist Álvaro Vargas Llosa was briefly arrested for a few hours and his passport withheld by the authorities when he arrived this week at the Maiquetía's airport in Venezuela.

• Tuesday, May 26th 2009 - 18:29 UTC

  Santiago residents have increasing number of firearms for protection

  

  According to the latest study on citizen security, families in the Talagante borough of the Santiago de Chile Metropolitan Region have the highest number of firearms for protection.

• Tuesday, May 26th 2009 - 12:54 UTC

  Latinamerica foreign trade forecasted to contract 9 to 11% in 2009

  

  The main impact for Latinamerica of the global financial crisis and economic slowdown has been the contraction of trade, so far in the range of 9 to 11%, revealed Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Latinamerica and the Caribbean, Cepal.

• Tuesday, May 26th 2009 - 12:35 UTC

  Cuba is desperate to promote agriculture.

  

  Measures to promote the “attachment to farms” and discourage the exodus of peasants to the cities thus helping Cuba achieve self sufficiency in food production, was demanded in Sunday’s edition of the official newspaper from the Union of Communist Youths, Juventud Rebelde.

• Tuesday, May 26th 2009 - 12:25 UTC

  Latinamerican Liberals hold congress in “Bolivarian” Venezuela

  

  Liberal political parties and thinkers from Latinamerica are holding their annual congress this week in the Venezuelan capital Caracas. The event is in the framework of the 25th anniversary of the local branch Cedice-Libertad and will promote debates on liberal policies to address poverty and the current global slowdown.

• Tuesday, May 26th 2009 - 12:05 UTC

  Government tells Cubans: austerity or blackouts

  

  The Cuban government reduced from 6 to 2% the projected growth of the economy for 2009. The announcement was made by Cabinet vice president and Economy Minister Marino Murillo during a meeting at which “exceptional measures” were announced starting June first to reduce energy consumption, the official daily Juventud Rebelde said Saturday.

• Tuesday, May 26th 2009 - 05:35 UTC

  Chavez, Correa promise to protect their peoples from “unethical” media

  

  Venezuela's President Hugo Chávez and Ecuador’s Rafael Correa announced they intend to create international bodies within the Union of South American Nations (Unasur) to protect both governments and peoples against the unethical behaviour of some news media.