Observatorio de Infraestructura de América del Sur

The team responsible for implementing the South American Infrastructure Observatory is made up of representatives from the twelve (12) countries that form the Brasília Consensus. Together, we have committed to establishing this tool as a regional public good.

Our focal points are public officials with high-level technical expertise in infrastructure, transportation, and logistics. They are responsible for the development and oversight of strategic projects in their respective countries.

We operate as a collaborative network that coordinates efforts among governments, academic institutions, and the private sector—creating a space for exchanging experiences, data, and best practices to promote a more connected, efficient, and sustainable region.

We are supported technically by the Alliance for Latin America and the Caribbean Integration and Development (ILAT),  comprised of multilateral credit banks: the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Development Bank of Latin America and the Caribbean (CAF), and FONPLATA – Development Bank.

The South American Infrastructure Observatory, through its digital platform, pursues the following core objectives:

• Gather, systematize, and disseminate high-quality, up-to-date information on infrastructure, transportation, and logistics activities and projects across South America—both physical and digital—in order to consolidate technical knowledge among the countries of the region.
• Serve as a strategic and accessible tool to guide and support evidence-based decision-making, helping to plan and allocate resources for new physical and digital infrastructure projects.
• Monitor and optimize ongoing and planned works and projects, identifying gaps and specific investment needs to promote connectivity, improve logistical efficiency, and enhance the regional impact of initiatives.
• Foster coordination among national governments, academic institutions, the private sector, and other key actors, ensuring resource complementarity and the exchange of best practices.
• Promote the mobilization of financial and technical resources, both domestic and international, through the strategic dissemination of reliable and updated technical information, with the goal of facilitating the implementation of priority projects and strengthening South America’s physical and economic integration.

The South American Infrastructure Observatory was created as a technical and collaborative initiative designed to address the need for a tool that gathers, analyzes, and disseminates strategic information on infrastructure, transportation, and logistics at the regional level.

This initiative emerged within the Infrastructure and Transport Network of the Brasília Consensus, as a space to strengthen regional integration, improve planning, and optimize the execution of strategic projects.

Two key precedents laid the groundwork for this initiative:

• GEOSUR, launched by CAF and the Pan American Institute of Geography and History (PAIGH) in 2007, was a pioneering geospatial platform that provided maps, project visualizations, and territorial analysis tools for Latin America and the Caribbean.
• COSIPLAN (South American Council of Infrastructure and Planning), created in 2009 as part of UNASUR, incorporated the IIRSA Initiative as its technical forum and aimed to plan and implement regional physical integration with a strategic, social, and environmental perspective.

The proposal for the South American Infrastructure Observatory was first presented at the XV Meeting of the Network, held in May 2024 in Quito, Ecuador, where the Observatory’s Implementation Plan was introduced.

Months later, during the First High-Level Meeting of the Network, held in Bogotá in December 2024, member countries defined the Observatory’s technical team and approved the platform’s implementation, with support from the Alliance for Latin America and the Caribbean Integration and Development (ILAT).

The Observatory is aligned with the principles of the Brasília Consensus: promoting regional integration, fostering cooperation and sustainable development, and projecting South America’s vision on the global stage.

Its launch marks a decisive and tangible step toward a new infrastructure agenda—one that supports evidence-based decision-making, prioritizes investments, coordinates efforts among countries, and promotes a more integrated, competitive, and resilient South America.