The First CELAC-Africa High-Level Forum (external link) took place in Bogotá, Colombia, from 18 to 21 March 2026. Colombia convened the gathering under its Pro Tempore Presidency of CELAC, the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States. Leaders and representatives from Latin America, the Caribbean, and Africa came together to strengthen political and institutional ties between the two regions.
Participants focused on South-South cooperation, trade, sustainable development, and ethnic-racial justice. They also advanced the Declaration of Bogotá as a framework for deeper collaboration.
AfaLab’s Executive Director, Liliane Umubyeyi, PhD (external link), joined the gathering at the invitation of Francia Márquez (external link), Vice President of Colombia.
For AfaLab, the meeting marked an important political moment. It moved beyond formal cooperation and opened space for deeper conversations on historical justice, racial justice, gender justice, social justice, and environmental justice.
As the first Black woman to hold such high office in Colombia and South America, Vice President Márquez brought historic weight to the gathering. Her leadership helped frame the CELAC-Africa (external link) process as more than a diplomatic exercise. It became a space to connect Black diasporic struggles in Latin America and the Caribbean with justice movements across the African continent.
The CELAC-Africa (external link) process challenged a global order still shaped by colonial legacies, racial hierarchy, and unequal power. It created room for new alliances, shared resistance, and institutions capable of advancing justice beyond borders.
AfaLab also used the gathering to deepen relationships with partners and strengthen our work across transcontinental movements for racial justice and reparations.
As Liliane reflected after Bogotá, Vice President Márquez (external link)’s leadership reminds us that another political path is possible. One grounded in humility, courage, historical clarity, and a commitment to people too often pushed to the margins of global politics.