Havana, January 27 (RHC)-– The leaders of several Latin American and Caribbean countries have already arrived in the Cuban capital, Havana, to attend the summit of the Latin American and Caribbean Community of States (CELAC).
 
The President of Venezuela, Nicolas Maduro, arrived in the early hours of Monday to participate in the regional forum, which will take place January 28th to 29th, and will address issues related to economic and political integration and new strategies to fight poverty and boost regional sustainable development.

"We are together, walking a unique path: that of unity, freedom and prosperity,” said the Venezuelan Head of State upon his arrival at the Jose Marti International Airport in Havana.
 
Earlier on Sunday, the President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff also arrived in Havana on an official visit.  On the sidelines of the summit, the Brazilian president attended an inauguration ceremony of Cuba's first 700-meter quay, which was supported by Brazilian funds and will later hold a meeting with her Cuban counterpart Raul Castro on bilateral ties.
 
Others heads of state and government who have already arrived in Havana include Bolivian President Evo Morales, Uruguayan President José Mujica, Haitian President Michel Joseph Martelly, and Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller.
 
The CELAC summit, the the theme: "The Fight Against Poverty, Hunger And Inequality," will see the bloc's rotating presidency transfered from Cuba to Costa Rica.  CELAC, a regional bloc of 33 countries with roughly 600 million people, was founded in December 2011.
The regional organization, the result of a decade-long push for deeper integration within the Americas, seeks to deepen political, economic, social and cultural integration in Latin America and the Caribbean.