The RedCLARA successful experience and all the opportunities related to implementing the BELLA II project were presented at the "Digital Conversation: Experiences, successful cases and best practices in the Latin American and Caribbean."
The event was held on March 30 and opened a dialogue on the design and implementation of regional digital agendas. It was organized by the "Confederación de Empresarios Privados de Bolivia (CEPB for its acronym in Spanish) in collaboration with "Fundación para el Desarrollo de las Tecnologías de Información y Comunicación en Bolivia, FUNDETIC-Bolivia."
Luis Eliécer Cadenas, RedCLARA executive director, explained to the audience that, in the last 20 years, the organization has developed "an unparalleled digital infrastructure in the region, connecting universities and research centers and linking them with global actors and networks."
RedCLARA has become an essential digital ecosystem supporting the development of digital transformation through knowledge access and research capacity at a global level. "Just in Latin America, RedCLARA connects more than 2,000 universities and many research centers through national networks," he said.
The executive director also highlighted the success of the organization's latest Project: BELLA. It was funded by the European Union (EU) and led by the research and education networks of Latin America (RedCLARA) and Europe (GÉANT).
For the first time, this Project achieved direct connectivity between both regions, positively impacting security, privacy, connection quality, and data transfer speed. That did not exist just two years ago. "Thanks to BELLA, currently RedCLARA and the academic networks of the region have an enormous connectivity capacity that led and facilities organized cooperation with Europe, which is very important for the social and economic development of the region," he emphasized.
For instance, one of the advantages of connectivity through BELLA is the timely use of data from the EU's Earth observation and monitoring programme, Copernicus. This programme provides valuable information to improve people's lives based on vast amounts of global data from satellites and ground, aerial, and maritime measurement systems. "These data are voluminous and extremely useful. Their transmission speed to Latin America and the possibility of taking action on them is fundamental. For example, they provide essential information to manage risk issues and to save lives in disasters such as hurricanes, earthquakes, and landslides", explained Luis Eliécer Cadenas.
The BELLA Programme, in its first phase, deployed a submarine cable directly connecting Europe with Latin America (BELLA-S Project) and completed a fiber optic backbone network for South America (BELLA-T Project), which has provided submarine cable access to the National Education and Research Networks (RNEN) of Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, and Panama.
Due to the success of this programme, RedCLARA is implementing a new phase, the BELLA II project, funded by DG INTPA of the EU.
BELLA II aims to strengthen and expand the digital ecosystem of Latin America and the Caribbean, enabling relations and exchanges between companies, research centers, educational institutions, and national research and education networks, aligned with the strategic objectives in education, science, technology, and innovation from LAC and Europe.
BELLA II is one of the landmarks of the Digital Alliance of Europe and Latin America & Caribbean, signed in March in Colombia, as well as Copernicus (developing two data centers in Latin America), the high-level political dialogues, and a business accelerator.
The possibility of connecting Bolivia to RedCLARA in the future and its impact on the business sector was also a topic of the conversation.
"Our infrastructure, architecture, and operating model seek that business organizations generate and obtain value-added, as well as the necessary knowledge to improve their productivity and to develop initiatives that become valuable services for other actors in the region or Europe. Furthermore, it can promote partnerships with companies and organizations and produce new ideas, products, and services, contributing to digital transformation," concluded the executive director of RedCLARA.
