The Lanzarote and La Graciosa Chamber of Commerce hosted this week the first 2026 session of the **Regional Council for Internationalization** (CRI). This technical meeting served to coordinate joint actions and establish the priorities that will mark the **archipelago's external agenda** during the current fiscal yearThe Wednesday, February 4th session brought together the working committees of the Interterritorial Committee for Internationalization and began with a welcome from the president of the host corporation, José Valle, and the Deputy Minister of Economy and Internationalization of the Government of the Canary Islands, Gustavo González de Vega. Both leaders highlighted the importance of unity of action to optimize resources and project a solid image of the islands in global marketsThe Regional Council for Internationalization, created in July 2024, has consolidated itself as the key inter-institutional coordination body promoted by the Government of the Canary Islands through the Vice-Ministry of Economy and Internationalization, with the technical secretariat of Proexca
The session held today in Arrecife responds to the technical call of the body, focused on the working committees. It integrates all the fundamental actors of the archipelago's internationalization ecosystem: the Chambers of Commerce, the island Councils, ICEX, Casa África, the Canary Special Zone (ZEC), the business confederations, the port authorities, and the two free trade zones of the Canary Islands.
Canary Islands Brand: a visibility strategy
One of the central points of the agenda has been the presentation of the Marca Canarias project. This initiative, promoted by the Presidency of the Government of the Canary Islands through Proexca, is born from a shared effort with the main public and private actors of the islands, who have actively participated since the conceptualization phaseDuring the session it was underlined that this initiative transcends the creation of a brand to become a visibility and communication strategy. Its objective is for administrations and companies to project a unified and solid external image. Thus, it seeks to professionalize international communication and reinforce the positioning of the islands, aligning the competitiveness of the Canary Islands to coherently open new global business opportunities.The work agenda has also addressed the launch of theOffice of Strategic Projects and has placed special focus on the neighboring continent through the economic and commercial table of the Strategy for Africa. In this block, the AFRICO and CAMES projects, led by the Chambers of Commerce of Gran Canaria and Santa Cruz de Tenerife, respectively, have been analyzedLikewise, the planning for the launch of the APORTA programs and international scholarships has been carried out, fundamental tools for supporting the internationalization of Canary Islands SMEs and the training of specialized talent. The session concluded with a joint programming by the CRI members to align sectoral plans for the coming months