The Second Meeting of Central Bank Technicians of the American Continent, convened in Santiago in December 1949, adopted a proposal to establish a teaching and research institute in Latin America for the exchange of information among monetary authorities, and set up a Committee for its establishment. The Committee's recommendations were discussed at the Third Meeting of Central Bank Technicians in Havana, February-March 1952, and by-laws and general purposes of a Center for Latin American Monetary Studies (CEMLA) were approved. CEMLA was officially established in September 1952.

The main objectives of CEMLA are: (1) to promote a better understanding of monetary and banking matters in Latin America, as well as of the pertinent aspects of fiscal policy, and to relate these elements to the economy as a whole; (2) to assist in improving the qualifications of central bank and other financial agencies' personnel in America through (a) the organization of seminars and special training courses and (b) the publication of surveys and research studies; (3) to conduct research and systematize the results of past experience in the above fields; and (4) to provide information to member banks on developments of international and regional interest in the fields of monetary, fiscal, and banking policies.

The budget is provided by annual contributions from the associate and collaborating members. Specific projects have been made possible, in the past, through partial financial assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Inter-American Development Bank (IaDB), the Ford Foundation, the U.S. Agency for International Development (US-AID), and the Rockefeller Foundation. Apart from associate and collaborating central banks, many banking and international organizations cooperate by detailing staff members to lecture or serve as advisers, e.g., IMF, IBRD, IaDB, OAS, BIS, the Bank of England and Deutsche Bundesbank.

COMPOSITION

The 30 associate members that have the right to speak and vote at the Assembly are the Central Banks of Argentina, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Netherlands Antilles, Nicaragua, Paraguay, Peru, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela, the Eastern Caribbean Central Bank, and the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority. There are 17 collaborating members that include international and regional financial institutions, such as the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), the Latin American Reserve Fund (LARF), and the Latin American Export Bank (BLADEX); non-Latin American central banks, e.g., Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Philippines, Portugal, Spain, and the United States; and bank supervising agencies.

STRUCTURE

The Assembly, comprised of all members, holds regular meetings every year or whenever necessary. The Governing Board is composed of the Bank of Mexico, which has a permanent seat as the host country, and four other members elected by the Assembly on a rotating basis for four-year terms. The Board holds regular meetings at least twice a year.

The Director is the administrative and technical head of the Center and is elected for a five-year term by the Assembly; whereas the Deputy Director is appointed for a five-year term by the Governing Board. They are aided by a small permanent staff. The Bank of Mexico acts as External Auditor.

The Training Department performs the technical and administrative tasks implied in the organization of the basic and special programs held at CEMLA's headquarters or in other sites. It also carries out the necessary arrangements to satisfy applications concerning residence and interchange of officials presented by its Associate and Collaborating Institutions. It is also responsible for organizing seminars for students and professionals. An important activity of the technical personnel in this Department is the delivery of courses, conferences, laboratories, and seminars included in the programs.

The International Relations Department has a double objective. On one hand, it aims to collaborate with the Associate and Collaborating central banks of CEMLA and organize technical meetings for the various levels of the central banks' staff, from Governors to specific areas or departments. On the other hand, it is in charge of publishing books and reviews on central banking, financial and monetary policies, bank supervision and economic policy issues relevant to central bank activities.

Meetings of Central Bank Governors of the American Continent and of Latin America and Spain

CEMLA acts as the permanent secretariat for these meetings, to handle administrative arrangements and whatever informational material is required by participants. Attendance at annual "continental" meetings includes representatives from Central Banks in Latin America, Aruba, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Canada, East Caribbean Group, Guyana, Jamaica, Netherlands Antilles, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and the United States. The "Latin American" meetings, which also include Aruba, Barbados, Belize, Cuba, East Caribbean Group, the Cayman Islands Monetary Authority, Guyana, Jamaica, Netherlands Antilles, Spain, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago, take place twice a year: the first one coinciding with the "continental" meeting and the second with the meeting of the Latin American, the Spanish and the Philippine Governors of the IMF and the IBRD, which is held the week before the Fund-Bank Annual Meetings of their Boards of Governors.

Other Meetings

CEMLA also acts as technical secretariat for the Annual Meeting of the Governors of Latin America, Spain and the Philippines at the IMF and IBRD, Meeting of Central Bank Treasurers (annual), Meeting on Central Bank Human Resources Management (annual), Meeting on Central Bank Accounting and Budgetary Matters (annual), Meeting of Central Bank Cultural Directors (annual), Meeting of Central Bank Legal Advisors (annual), and Meeting of Communications of Central Banks.

GENERAL PUBLICATIONS

Boletín (bimonthly, published in Spanish); Monetaria (quarterly technical journal, published in Spanish); Money Affairs (twice a year, published in English).