Member States of the Community of Portuguese Speaking Countries accepted the candidacy presented by the government of Asunción.

It was during the IX Meeting “Strategic Triangle: Latin America – Europe – Africa” , held in July 2020 by IPDAL, that the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Paraguay announced the presentation of the application for the status of Associate Observer. According to Antonio Rivas Palacios, “CPLP is the best way to reach Africa, to make association agreements and economic alliances”.

On September 24, 2020, the CPLP Permanent Consultation Committee confirmed that the Member States “favorably assessed” the Paraguayan candidacy. The process can now advance to the Summit of Heads of State and Government, which must ratify the opinion now issued.

For the President of IPDAL, “this is another big step, which really brings Latin American countries closer to the Portuguese-speaking bloc. Paraguay’s interest in the CPLP, as well as its acceptance by Portuguese-speaking countries, further reinforces the Institute’s commitment to increasing political, diplomatic and economic dynamics between the two regions. It is also a sign that we are doing our job well and that the IPDAL message is being heard by the highest decision-makers, both in Latin America and in Africa”.

Uruguay, Chile and Argentina are the other Latin American countries already officially admitted to the group of 12 States and International Organizations that are Associate Observers of the CPLP.

Since 2016, IPDAL has also been a Community Advisory Observer.