José Figueres Ferrer was a moderate Costa Rican politician who served as President of a governing Junta and then later as constitutional President. He studied at universities in Costa Rica and Mexico before also being educated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Upon his return to Costa Rica in 1928, Mr Figueres Ferrer bought a farm and became a successful coffee grower and rope manufacturer, whilst also building houses and providing medical care for his workers. In 1942 his criticism of the government forced him to become an exile in Mexico for two years. When he returned to Costa Rica he formed the Democratic Party, which eventually became the Social Democratic Party. Mr Figueres Ferrer then began training the Caribbean legion, a force of 700. Following the 1948 presidential election where Rafael Ángel Calderón Guardia sought reinstatement after being defeated by Otilio Ulate Blanco, Mr Figueres Ferrer obtained the arms and ammunition he had hidden on his plantation and led an uprising in support of President Ulate. After two months of civil war, the Costa Rican army was defeated and Mr Figueres Ferrer became the President of the provisional Junta, who wrote a constitution which abolished the army and granted women the right to vote as well as guaranteeing public education for all. He handed power over to President Ulate after serving as provisional President, yet he was elected President in 1953 after President Ulate had completed his term. During his term in office he vowed to follow a pro-United States policy due to his strong anti-communist stance. He also nationalised banks and implemented numerous social reforms. He was elected for a second term in 1958 and during this term he worked with several UN agencies to improve conditions in Costa Rica, as well as writing articles on Costa Rica and Caribbean politics. He became a symbol of the ‘democratic left’ in Latin America and became one of the first Latin American presidents to embark on diplomatic relations with the Soviet Union. During his third term as President from 1970 to 1974 Mr Figueres Ferrer prevented an economic collapse by discovering a new market through which Costa Rica could sell 30,000 tonnes of coffee to the Soviet Union. He also managed to sustain Costa Rica’s volatile economy during this period by negotiating with the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund to receive aid. After his presidency he became an Ambassador for subsequent administrations and supported the Sandinista revolution in Nicaragua. He also rallied against U.S policy to support Nicaragua’s contra guerrillas.

Instituto de Cooperación Iberoamericana (ICI) was a Spanish organisation, created in 1979 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and based in Madrid. ICI’s predecessors were the Instituto de Cultura Hispánica and the Centro Iberoamericano de Cooperación, whose aims were to preserve the idea of Hispanic culture. In November 1988, ICI became the AECI (Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional) and experienced a change in its functions and infrastructure. In 2007 AECI became a state agency and transferred its name to AECID (Agencia Española de Cooperación Internacional para el Desarrollo). Currently AECID’s objectives are to manage and implement public policies directed at international cooperation to ensure sustainable development. They also work to actively build peace and move towards global citizenship. Poverty reduction is the ultimate goal of the AECID and they use the Millennium Development Goals as a reference to guide their work. They currently have 44 technical cooperation offices and 15 cultural training centres located in partner countries worldwide.

Galo Plaza Lasso was a politician who served as President of Ecuador from 1948 to 1952. Born in New York in 1906, he completed a range of studies including Economics at The University of California and Diplomacy at Georgetown University. He moved into the political arena in 1938 when he was appointed Minister of War for Ecuador. In 1944 he was chosen to become Ecuador’s Ambassador to the United States and in 1945 he represented Ecuador at the Inter-American Conference on War and Peace and the UN Conference on International Organisation. In 1948 he won the Ecuadorian presidential election, going on to serve a four-year term. He embarked on a programme of economic development and governmental administration that led to the economy showing a significant level of improvement. His continual promotion of democratic rights was one of the defining features of his administration that he is still remembered for. He encouraged freedom of the press and free speech. He also helped to develop Ecuador’s banana boom, which allowed Ecuador to become a key supplier to the U.S market. Following his presidency, Mr Lasso dedicated himself to furthering the work of international organisations, most notably the United Nations. In 1958 he led the Special Committee meetings at the UN, called Economic Commissions for Latin America, which served the purpose of creating a Latin American common market. He also led a successful mission to send UN observers to Lebanon. In May 1964 he began work as personal representative to the UN Secretary General and assisted as a mediator in Cyprus. One of his final notable political acts was his 1968 appointment as the Secretary General of the Organisation of American States.

Fundación CIEPE is Venezuela’s State Research Center for Experimental Agro-industrial Production and aims to increase agricultural production in Venezuela and improve the country’s food security. CIEPE was inaugurated in 1973 and formally established the following year. In accordance with CIEPE’s aims the institution seeks to resolve the agricultural issues in Venezuela by focusing mainly on technological research and staff training. The technological aspects of Venezuela’s agriculture that the institute examines are the preparation and processing of all agricultural goods before they are distributed. In relation to food security, the institute seeks improve Venezuelan sovereignty through research, increased monitoring and an emphasis on innovation, a system which they believe will in turn, secure Venezuela’s agricultural goods. CIEPE also focuses on quality control through analytical services and reviews which are based on international and national standards. The institute also supports Venezuela’s economy as it looks to international sources for funding, which will allow them to operate at a greater capacity with better technological services and thus boost Venezuela’s economy and the global food economy.

Fundacion Ayacucho is an institution that was formed under Venezuela’s Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation sector in 1975 with the aim of contributing to the training of professionals in the technical and scientific sectors so that they could advance Venezuela’s technological development. These sectors had been identified as priorities in the development plans of Venezuela. Over 35 years the foundation has trained more than 135,000 Venezuelans in both domestic and foreign educational institutions. Today the goal remains to promote education amongst the Venezuelan population that resides in the low income bracket. The foundation previously granted around 3000 scholarships annually, however, due to the restructuring of the foundation and its funding since 2006, it has been able to grant around 15,000 per year.