Context and Objectives of the Seminar
The Victoria Institute for Links with Latin America (VILLA) organises a high-level seminar annually that brings together academics, politicians and diplomats to discuss a theme of relevance.
The seminar on 6 December will be entitled ‘Kiwis, Jaguars and Dragons’ and will explore the comparative implications for both New Zealand and Latin American countries of the rise of China.
This will involve discussion of how our countries might learn from each other in order to face the challenges of the evolving world order in the light of the ongoing shift in economic gravity away from the North Atlantic region towards the Asia Pacific.
Both Latin America and New Zealand stand to gain a great deal from the opportunities that the growing markets of China offer.
Given the importance of primary product exports for both, the rising demand for raw materials as well as agricultural products is particularly promising.
However, there are also challenges and, indeed, risks involved with increased interaction.
A number of questions addressing this tension form the core focus of this seminar:
– How have the economies of Latin America and New Zealand been interacting with China and how has this changed over time?
– What is the structure of trade relations and what are the future prospects?
– What institutional agreements and political interactions have governed this increased interaction?
– What are the geopolitical implications of increased engagement?
– What have been the impacts of increased trade volumes in key sectors?
– What can Latin America and New Zealand learn from each in terms of optimising the opportunities of increased trade and how can cooperation assist in this regard?
– What is the likely pattern of interaction and partnership over coming decades and what strategic areas should Latin America and New Zealand focus upon?.
