The Ministers Responsible for Trade, during their Buenos Aires meeting (2001), reaffirmed their commitment to creating opportunities for the participation of the smallest economies and enhancing their levels of development. They recognized the broad differences in levels of development and size of the economies of countries participating in the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) negotiations.

At the same time, they stressed the importance of cooperation as a means of strengthening the countries’ productive capacities and competitiveness, especially for the smaller economies, considering the broad differences in levels of development and size. They also reiterated the necessity of technical assistance and special measures in order to attain these goals.

On this occasion, the Ministers decided that the Third Summit of the Americas would provide an opportunity to continue deepening the Plans of Action that were approved at the earlier summits. These Plans have the goal of strengthening the Hemispheric Cooperation Program, which supports the efforts of each country to participate in FTAA negotiations and to benefit from the Free Trade Area.

The Committee of Trade Negotiations of the FTAA instructed the Consultative Group on Smaller Economies to formulate a proposal of the Hemispheric Cooperation Program (HCP). The objectives of this program are as follows:

• To strengthen the capacities of countries to implement and fully participate in the FTAA and to further contribute to growth with equity and inclusive economic development.
• To help the countries to face challenges and to overcome them efficiently and take maximum advantage of the benefits of the FTAA associated with trade liberalization.
• To promote a better relationship between the objectives and requirements of development and the opening of commerce.
• To complement the current or planned multilateral, subregional and national programs with the goals of:

- Strengthening the economies’ productive capacities and promoting their competitiveness

- Encouraging the development of innovation and the transference of appropriate technologies

- Improving the mechanisms used to respond to economic shocks

- Increasing institutional strength and the development of capacities to formulate policies, develop strategies of negotiation, and implement the FTAA

• To increase the coordination among donors and between donors and recipients to maximize cooperation and technical assistance.