Havana, April 29 (RHC) -- Alicia Barcena, executive secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), has praised Cuba's opening to foreign investment.

Barcena made the remarks in Havana, where she is participating at the First International Seminar on Opportunities and Challenges for the Development of Latin America and Cuba, underway at the Melia Cohiba Hotel.

Speaking at the event, the UN official said the Cuban experience should be highlighted because while opening to foreign investment, it protects local job security. She also said that the Special Development Zone of Mariel “is an example of the use of competitive advantages in the process of foreign investment, because distance makes the export of Latin American products to other continents more expensive, but the Cuban port could be used as stopover and platform for shipments.”

Parallel to the injection of foreign capital, she considers it to be an appropriate strategy to continue promoting the export of health services and Cuba's valuable human resources.