Bridgetown - Antonella Cavallari, Secretary General of IILA (Italo-Latin American International Organization), participated in the Regional Summit on Security and Justice organized by the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) in Bridgetown, Barbados, on December 11-12. The summit marked the official launch of the Latin America and Caribbean Alliance for Justice and Security.

The event brought together key institutional actors from Latin America and the Caribbean committed to combating transnational organized crime, which poses a severe threat to democratic institutions and economic growth in the region. Many useful discussions took place on the sidelines of the conference. A collective, coordinated, and concrete response to this issue is increasingly urgent, as highlighted during the summit. The IDB estimates that organized crime causes a loss equivalent to 3.4% of the region's GDP.

The Alliance proposed by the IDB is envisioned as a practical tool for all countries and regional and international institutions. During the summit, participants signed the Barbados Declaration, reaffirming their commitment to the initiative.

Cavallari contributed to identifying the necessary actions to achieve this goal by sharing IILA's experience as an executor of numerous justice and security projects funded by Italy and the European Union. She emphasized the importance of adopting a holistic approach, involving not only all actors within the penal chain, including the penitentiary system, but also civil society and businesses specializing in advanced technological systems to combat crime.

The Secretary General also underscored IILA’s role—being a signatory of the Declaration—in contributing expertise and leveraging the professionalism of Italy’s law enforcement and specialized institutions to support the initiative.