BUSAN, Korea (CMC) – The Board of Governors of the Inter American Development Bank (IDB) has ended its 56th annual meeting here following a series of events that underscored the strengthening of ties between Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean.

The IDB said that its next board of governors meeting in 2016 will be held in the Bahamas.

In her speech to the meeting, Korean President Park Geun-hye proposed three new partnerships to guide cooperation between her country and Latin America and the Caribbean.

She said there was need for expanding development cooperation to high added-value areas; establishing a common market for the free movement of people, goods and capital; and sharing development knowledge and experiences for mutual prosperity.

In addition, the Korean leader announced that her country will establish a US$100 million fund for infrastructure investments in the region and provide up to one billion US dollars in bilateral financing for projects in the region.

The Board of Governors is the IDB’s top decision-making body. Its members are finance ministers, central bank presidents and other high-level authorities from the Bank’s 48 member countries including the Caribbean.

A statement issued at the end of the meeting noted that the governors had approved an update of the IDB’s institutional strategy for 2016-2019 and instructed the Bank’s management to prepare an action plan with specific targets for the strategy’s implementation over the next four years.

Last year the IDB approved an estimated US$13.6 billion in loans and guarantees and US$214 million in grants for Haiti, confirming its role as the leading source of long-term financing for Latin America and the Caribbean.

“In terms of volume, 42 per cent of the new financing was approved for projects involving institutional development, such as state modernization and reform. Infrastructure projects, in sectors such as transport, energy, and water and sanitation, received 38 per cent of the resources,” the IDB said.

It said that social sectors, such as health and education, received 16 per cent, while the balance went to trade and integration projects.

Prior to the meeting, the IDB released its most recent regional macroeconomic report titled “The Labyrinth. How can Latin America and the Caribbean Navigate the Global Economy”.

The report assesses potential external shocks the region may face in the coming months, and the impacts of declining commodity prices. Its authors caution that many countries will need to adjust their public sector budgets in order to address rising fiscal imbalances and financial risks. Furthermore, the report analyzes how governments might take such measures in ways that protect social gains and improve productivity.

One of the highlights of the meeting here was the seminar on youth and innovation that brought together a group of 11 young entrepreneurs from Latin America, the Caribbean and Korea.

Prompted by IDB President Luis Alberto Moreno, the participants discussed ideas for cross-border collaboration, such as using a Korean app that promotes reforestation to help replenish Haiti’s forest coverage.