Hassan Qaqaya, Ana Maria Alvarez and Pierre Horna undertook a comprehensive mission to Latin America to launch COMPAL II. This mission covered the following countries: Costa Rica (16-17 April), Venezuela (20-21 April), Dominican Republic (22-23 April), Colombia (22-24 April) and Peru (27-28 April).

1.- Launching of COMPAL II in Costa Rica. San José, Costa Rica (16 - 17 April 2009)

Thrusday 16 April:

Morning:
- Ceremony of the Signature of Memorandum of Understanding between the Minister of Economy, the UNCTAD- SG and the Swiss Ambassador in Costa Rica.
- Dissemination of the succesful activities carried out under COMPAL I in Costa Rica.
- Recommendations for the Competition Agency (COPROCOM) derived from the recent UNCTAD Peer Review of Costa Rica carried out in July 2008.

Afternoon:
- Official launching of the activities under COMPAL II (in accordance to the Annual Plan of Action - POA 2009)
(particularly those activities that will follow-up the recommendations of the UNCTAD Peer Review. i.e. Competition issues)

Friday 17 April:

Morning:
- Official launching of the activities under COMPAL II (in accordance to the POA 2009) (cont')
(particularly those activities to be carried out under the component of consumer protection)

Afternoon:
- Conclusions and recommendations for the implementation of COMPAL in Costa Rica. Proposals for the COMPAL regional component.

Audience: Costa Rican Government Officials

2.- "Regional Seminar on the interaction of Trade and Competition: Perspectives and challenges for the Latin American and Caribbean Region" Caracas, Venezuela (20 - 21 April 2009) Jointly organized with SELA (Latin American and Caribbean Integration System)

Monday 20 April:

Morning:
- Competition Provision in RTAs: discussion on ways to achieve an effective implementation of provisions (Reference: UNCTAD- IDRC Research Project)

Afternoon:
- Legal Interpretation of the Competition Provisions applicable to cases of voluntary cooperation between Competition agencies.
The role of SICA, CARICOM, AC/ CAN, MERCOSUR, ALBA, UNASUR.
Lessons from the COMPAL Experience (regional component)
Tuesday 21 April:

Morning:
- Core principles and priority areas in order to set up a proposal for a regional agenda on Trade and Competition, with the support of UNCTAD and SELA.
- Analysis of Competition and Consumer Protection issues as important aspects to enhance SME competitiveness and development in the Latin American and Caribbean region.

Afternoon:
- The way forward: Presentation of the work programme of a "proposed working group" on the interaction of trade and competition in the Latin American and Caribbean Region.

Audience: 27 member States of SELA (All Latin American and Caribbean countries)

3.- Launching of COMPAL II in Colombia. Bogotá, Colombia (23 - 25 April 2009)

Thrusday 23 April:

Morning:
- Ceremony of the Signature of Memorandum of Understanding between the Minister of Trade and Commerce, the UNCTAD- SG and the Swiss Ambassador in Colombia (COSUDE)
- Dissemination of the succesful activities carried out under COMPAL I (Lessons from country experiences)

Afternoon:
- Official launching of the activities under COMPAL II (in accordance to the POA 2009)

Friday 24 April:

Morning:
- Official launching of the activities under COMPAL II (in accordance to the POA 2009) (cont')
(particularly those activities to be carried out under the component of consumer protection)

Afternoon:
- Conclusions and recommendations for the implementation of COMPAL in Colombia. Proposals for the COMPAL regional component.

4.- Launching COMPAL II in Peru. Lima, Peru (27 - 28 April 2009)

Monday 27 April:

Morning:
- Ceremony for the Signature of Memorandum of Understanding between the Prime Minister of Peru (Head of INDECOPI), the UNCTAD- SG and the Swiss Ambassador in Peru (COSUDE Lima)
- Dissemination of the succesful activities carried out under COMPAL I in Peru .