The Institute was approved as a Consultative Observer member of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries (CPLP). The status was officially granted to IPDAL during the XI Conference of Heads of State and Government of the CPLP, which took place on October 31st and November 1st, 2016, in Brasília. For the President of the Institute, “it is very important for IPDAL to be recognized by the CPLP Heads of State as a Consultative Observer Member of the Organization. Our candidacy was sponsored by Portugal and Cape Verde and approved by all member countries.” Paulo Neves added that “In recent years, IPDAL has promoted Latin American countries alongside CPLP countries on several occasions and initiatives, namely with the Latin America-CPLP Meeting , which is now in its 3rd edition and which is organized by IPDAL with the support of CPLP, SEGIB and SOFID. This is a great victory for IPDAL and a huge stimulus.” Despite focusing its area of intervention on Latin America, IPDAL is aware of the importance of the emerging axis between Africa and Latin America, both in terms of economic and commercial relations, and at political, diplomatic, security and cultural levels. The Institute’s connection to Portuguese-speaking countries, and to the CPLP as a bloc, has been increased through the diplomatic contacts that IPDAL makes with the Embassies in Portugal and various African organizations, with the desirable objective of being able to function as a hub, enhancing the connections between the two sides of the Atlantic. In this sense, the “Strategic Triangle: Latin America – Europe – Africa” Meetings are already a hallmark of IPDAL, which has brought together, since 2012, in Lisbon, high-level personalities from the media, political, diplomatic, financial, business, academic and cultural, from the three continents. The CPLP participated in all these Meetings, which have the High Patronage of His Excellency the President of the Republic of Portugal and have already brought to Lisbon, in third edition in 2014 , the former President of the Republic and former Prime Minister of the Republic of Cape Verde, Pedro Pires. The Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries, CPLP, has stood out for the active role it has played in all the ”Strategic Triangle” Meetings. In 2012 and 2013 he was represented by the then General Director, Hélder Vaz Lopes. In 2014, 2015 and 2016, CPLP representation was in charge of the Political-Diplomatic Advisor, Ambassador Alda Santos. At the ” II Latin America Meeting – CPLP ”, in 2015, the Executive Secretary of the Organization, Ambassador Murade Murargy, the Deputy Secretary General of SEGIB, Ambassador Mariangela Rebuá de Andrade Simões, the Minister for National Policies of the Government of Nicaragua, the ambassadors of the two blocs and representatives of countries participated CPLP observers, such as Georgia, Japan, Senegal and Turkey, in addition to several Portuguese companies with strategic interests in these geographies. Photography Credits: André Kosters / LUSA