Representatives from European Union (EU) Member States and Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries, along with the private sector, civil society, development financial institutions and academia, have gathered to advance digital cooperation between continents on cybersecurity and secure connectivity.
The EU-LAC Digital Alliance Multi-Stakeholder Forum took place on 23-25 October in Madrid. This event follows up on the conclusions of the EU-LAC Digital Alliance Dialogue on Cybersecurity, held in Santo Domingo in February this year, and serves as a platform to generate input for the upcoming EU-LAC High-Level Political Dialogue on Connectivity, to be held in Chile in early November.
Luis Eliécer Cadenas, Executive Director of RedCLARA, participated in the panel "Capacity Development: Enhancing Cybersecurity and Secure Connectivity in the LAC Region," which took place on Thursday, 24 October. During the session, Cadenas emphasized the role of RedCLARA and the BELLA II Project as enablers of digital transformation processes in the region, highlighting the initiatives they are leading to strengthen capacities and support countries in achieving secure connectivity.
Cadenas also highlighted the role of the Cybersecurity Group of the National Research and Education Networks (NRENs) and the newly launched BELLA II cybersecurity testbed, developed in partnership with the Latin American and Caribbean Cybersecurity Excellence Network (RedCiberlac) and the University of the Republic of Uruguay (UdelaR).
The session also featured Wouter Veenstra, director of outreach and global collaboration at the Global Forum on Cyber Expertise; Merili Soosalu, head of the regional programme at EU CyberNet; Ivan Rejon, head of government, policy, and strategy for Europe at Ericsson; and Alessandro Calabrese, head of training and consulting at Italy’s Cybersecurity Competence Center.
The discussions stressed the need for technical assistance to promote a human-centered digital transformation, rooted in a free, open, secure, and protected cyberspace. In this context, reinforcing regulatory and institutional capacities, sharing best practices, and fostering political dialogue on topics such as risk mitigation for secure digital connectivity remain essential.
The forum also aims to boost critical infrastructure resilience by sharing threat information, secure network development practices, risk management tools, technical solutions, and step-by-step guidance to safeguard national, social, and economic security.
For more information, please visit: https://d4dhub.eu/events/eu-lac-multi-stakeholder-forum-on-cybersecurity-and-secure-connectivity-2
