24th Ibero-American Summit concludes in Mexico

MEXICO CITY - The 24th Ibero-American Summit, which was held in Mexico's Gulf Coast state of Veracruz on Dec 8-9, concluded on Tuesday with delegates pledging to work for regional prosperity.

Speaking at the closing of the summit, Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto said one of the gathering's most important achievements was the signing of an accord to promote the mobility of students, teachers, youth and talents among member nations.

The Ibero-American region now has "new mechanisms to benefit our nations", Pena Nieto said.

The president described the summit as "very productive", noting that participating leaders and delegates also pledged to "continue to enhance cooperation between our countries to move Ibero-America towards prosperity".

The summit brought together heads of state and government as well as vice presidents and foreign ministers from Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking countries in Europe and Latin America, which together form the Organization of Ibero-American States (known by its Spanish acronym OEI), based in Madrid, Spain.

At the closing ceremony, the head of the OEI's general secretariat, Rebeca Greenspan, said "there is a very substantial agreement to achieve more equitable ... development for the region."

Participants of the summit also agreed to hold the hitherto annual summit every two years instead.

Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos offered to host the next summit in 2016.

This year's summit focused on education, innovation and culture.