In July 2016, the Commission and the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy presented joint proposals for Council decisions to sign and conclude the agreement. The signature was approved on 10 October by the Council`s 2016/1873 (EU) decision and the agreement was launched for signature by the parties on 25 October. The conclusion of the agreement was approved by the Council`s 2019/593 decision (EU) on 8 April 2019. The cooperation of civil society is a key element of the Foundation`s work. The international organization will focus on a wide range of issues such as sustainability, democracy and how universities can be shaped for the 21st century. The Foundation is funded by voluntary contributions from the European Commission, European and Latin American countries, foundations, development banks and the private sector. Germany`s contribution comes from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the free and Hanseatic city of Hamburg. In order to get it up and running as quickly as possible, the EU-LAC Foundation was first established as a foundation under German law. But this was never conceived as a permanent solution. The Foundation should always become an international organization. The agreement establishing the EU-LAC International Foundation was signed on 25 October 2016 and ratified by Germany a year later. The EU-LAK Foundation will become the EU-LAC International Foundation once eight signatories from each of the two regions, including the EU and Germany as host countries, have lodged their ratification instruments with the Council of the European Union. The partnership includes the exchange of documents and information (publications, databases and opportunities for cooperation) relevant to the bi-regional partnership, the organisation and holding of congresses, seminars and workshops, as well as joint publications.
The agreement does not involve the exchange of students. The EU-LAK Foundation officially began its activities in November 2011. The seat is in the free and Hanseatic city of Hamburg. The foundation was created and began working with a transitional foundation status under German civil law. [2] In 2012, the Council of the European Union authorised the European Commission to enter into negotiations for an international agreement establishing the EU LAK Foundation as an international organisation with the EU, its member states and the LAC countries. PUC-Rio has signed an agreement with the Foundation of the European Union – Latin America and the Caribbean (EU-LAC). The aim of the agreement is to strengthen cooperation in areas of mutual interest to the institutions: relations between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the development of the countries concerned. At the fifth EU-LAK summit (Lima, 2008), the heads of state and government of both regions decided to consider the creation of a bi-regional foundation to encourage debate on common strategies and measures to strengthen the partnership and increase its visibility.