Brasilia, June 24, 2026 – The Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organization (ACTO) today opened, at its headquarters in Brasilia, the first session of the Governing Board of the Amazonian Mechanism for Cooperation and Action (MACA), marking the beginning of a new phase for the regional financial mechanism created to strengthen Amazonian cooperation and mobilize resources to support strategic projects and initiatives for the benefit of the Amazon and its peoples.
During the opening day, representatives of the Member Countries formally established the Governing Board and, by consensus, elected its first authorities. Peru assumed the Presidency of the MACA Governing Board and Bolivia the Vice-Presidency, leading the work during the mechanism’s first year of operation.
The establishment of the Governing Board represents a new milestone in the process launched in October 2024 by the Working Group responsible for developing the institutional design of ACTO’s financial mechanism. During the session, the delegations recognized the work of Peru’s Ambassador to Brazil, Rómulo Acurio, who coordinated the preparatory work and led the negotiations that made it possible to advance the development of MACA and the establishment of its governance bodies.
Upon assuming the Presidency of the MACA Governing Board, César Joycep Aréstegui Bravo, Director for Amazonian Affairs at the General Directorate for American Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru, reaffirmed the commitment to achieving concrete results that will enable the mechanism to become operational and consolidate a predictable and sustainable source of financing for the Amazon region’s priorities.
In opening the meeting, ACTO Secretary General Martin von Hildebrand underscored that the establishment of the Governing Board represents the transition from the political mandates adopted by the Amazonian Presidents in the Belém and Bogotá Declarations toward the development of an institutional and financial capacity capable of delivering concrete results for the Amazon and its peoples. He also highlighted the importance of advancing the consolidation of MACA’s operating rules and building a robust strategy for the mobilization of international resources.
The first session of the Governing Board is being held on June 24 and 25 at the headquarters of ACTO’s Permanent Secretariat in Brasilia. The agenda includes the definition of a roadmap for the Board’s first year of operation, the review of the mechanism’s governance parameters, and the analysis of the next steps for its implementation.
Officially launched during COP30 in Belém, MACA is a regional instrument created by ACTO Member Countries to mobilize and channel resources aimed at supporting projects and initiatives that contribute to sustainable development and the strengthening of Amazonian cooperation.
