Mérida hosts Latin American fair trade summit

Mérida Mayor Cecilia Patrón Laviada inaugurated the VII Meeting of Cities and Towns for Fair Trade at the Universidad Marista de Mérida. The event brings together representatives from more than 20 cities across 10 Latin American countries to exchange experiences and develop mechanisms to strengthen local markets and increase income for producing families.

Participants include delegations from Honduras, Costa Rica, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, El Salvador, Chile, Paraguay, Brazil, and Mexico. The summit focuses on sustainable development, social inclusion, economic diversification, and the creation of strategic alliances between governments, universities, civil society, and the business sector.

Mérida is the first city in Mexico to receive the Fair Trade City distinction. During the opening, Patrón emphasized the importance of coordinated efforts to ensure fair trade provides real opportunities for producers and artisans, particularly those in the city's 47 rural districts.