I’d like to thank Miami for opening its arms to the Inter-American Development Bank, which will hold the Annual Meeting of its Board of Governors here next April. With its strong ties to Latin America and the Caribbean, no other city in the United States can match Miami as a venue for a meeting to discuss our region’s future. And no other city in the hemisphere has a spirit that matches so perfectly with the overarching theme of the Bank, Opportunities for the Majority.

This is a city where people from all over the world, and particularly from our own countries, come to live in peace and prosper. It is a model of how a place that was once swamps and dunes can become an economic powerhouse that offers opportunities to all.

As a global hub for trade and investment, Miami is headquarters for the Latin American and Caribbean operations of many international corporations. Its flourishing entertainment industry has made the city a modern cultural touchstone for our region.

For all of those reasons, it makes great sense for the IDB to convene its most important conference of the year in Miami. IDB Annual Meetings attract thousands of participants, starting with our Governors -- finance ministers, central bank presidents or other high-raking officials from our 47 member countries. On many occasions heads of state attend the opening of the formal sessions of the Board of Governors, our top policymaking body.

Besides public sector authorities, the Annual Meetings bring together leaders from the private sector and civil society, universities, think tanks and NGOs. Next year we will encourage the broadest participation possible because the IDB seeks to build more and better partnerships. We know that, by ourselves, we can only meet a fraction of our borrowing member countries’ needs to finance their development. We want to team up with many more partners to leverage our resources and have a bigger impact in improving living standards in our region.

We also want to showcase some of the exciting things that are happening in Latin America and the Caribbean. To that end we will organize a series of seminars on issues such as energy and biofuels, expanding access to credit for small and medium-size enterprises and what works in generating growth with economic inclusion.

The Annual Meeting will also provide us a chance to present a restructured IDB and our new managerial team. We are undertaking important reforms to serve many more clients in more creative and agile ways. We are reorienting our programs to improve the business climate in our region and spur private investment and boost trade throughout the Americas.

I want to thank Jorge Arrizurieta, head of the Miami Host Committee, for the hard work he and his team have done—and for the hard work I know they will do over the next seven months. I also want to thank the Floridian elected officials and business leaders who are here with us today.

Miami has always been a second home to me, the place where I went to college and where I still have many friends and family. Your city has welcomed and continues to welcome countless citizens from Latin America and the Caribbean seeking opportunities they couldn’t find at home. Their contributions help make this exciting city our region’s premier gateway to the United States. Once again, I thank Miami for opening its arms to the IDB. I understand you hosted a great meeting in 1987. I have every expectation that next year’s will be even better.

On a final note, I want to say that I believe that organizing our Annual Meeting in this beautiful city, the Gateway to the Americas, is a great opportunity for the IDB, and for the region. It is also a great opportunity for Miami.