[music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [ music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music] [music ] [music] senator ministeredra pleaseedra well clearedra the father a dog always has someone gives us the go-ahead or we are fine we are here gathered first of all and in my role as mayor of the regional capital of the rivers, Valdivia, to welcome the President of the Republic and his team that accompanies him in a context that seems to me extremely relevant. We are the region with the second worst unemployment figures. We have already reached over 10% unemployment in the regional capital, and therefore any debate that addresses the problems and challenges in the area of ​​job creation for our region is a priority. That is why it is a very good sign for us to be gathered here as the first visit of the President of the Republic to ACENAF, among other things because it reminds us that there is an industrial vocation in Valdivia, that we are a maritime city with a river vocation and with a long shipbuilding history, that we have public and private capacities to develop our territory. That is why we have discussed the shipbuilding policy, a policy that was agreed upon and decreed last year in the previous government and which, fortunately, and I consider it very good news, Mr. President, has been formalized as a policy that will continue and is also embraced by this government. In that sense, we are waiting, among other things, for the roadmap to be released quickly . Something I have requested as mayor from the president and also from the Minister of Defense so that with this roadmap we can all have certainty about how we are going to move forward in terms of investment. I want to conclude by thanking the mayor of Talcahuano and the representative of the mayor of Puerto Monón for their presence, because we are all connected as the five naval cities of our country: Valparaíso, Talcahuano, Puerto Monón, Puntarenas, and Valdivia. All thinking about the future of our country and above all about the development and generation of employment for the workers of our communities. We would like to thank each of you for your presence and reiterate the fact that we emphasize the commitment and continuity of our country's shipbuilding policy, which directly benefits our neighbors. Welcome, Mr. President of the Republic. We hope it will also be a good day in the other municipalities he will visit and that we will have good results from this event. [applause] Good morning everyone. I want to welcome our President of the Republic, José Antonio Cas, to the river region. For us, it is a great sign that our president, on his first visit to the region, has chosen to be here at ACENAP. Firstly, Mr. President, because ACENAF is a large shipyard that has importance in the ocean on the Pacific coasts and also, Mr. President, everything that has been promoted in the meeting, all the suggestions, everything that has been researched, will promote the development of the national naval policy of our country. And what better way, Mr. President, to do it than from the regions. I have no doubt that it will continue to boost economic development and generate more employment in our country, in our region. Thank you so much. Hey, good day everyone. We had the opportunity today to have a close conversation with the President of the Republic. We naturally welcome him to our region and have the opportunity to raise the major issues of the region, a pressing issue on a complex day for Chile and for everyone, and which has allowed us a very kind treatment, also a recognition from the president himself of the role of the governors throughout the country. country. I appreciate that new perspective he has regarding the figure of the country's governors. We hope that in these conversations we have had we can develop some initiatives that concerned us and be able to move forward with them. Regarding national naval policy, undoubtedly regarding shipbuilding. Well, today we leave absolutely at ease because there will be continuity, there will be significant support, and those cities like the regional capital, which has developed its naval construction career through the Austral University itself , plus a prestigious private company like SENAP, guarantees us very important values ​​in terms of labor and technology. and in progress in responding to shipbuilding, not only in Chile, but also in the world. Thank you so much. Thank you, Governor. Before giving the floor to the Minister of Defense, and on behalf of the senators, because we have our Senator Gatica, our Senator Urresti, who are local, but we also have the presence of Senator Saavedra, who since when he was mayor of Talcahuano and today is accompanied by someone very well known, who is his son, who is the current mayor of Talcahuano, promoted everything related to naval construction policy. Therefore, I would like to request, on behalf of the senators of the Senate, that Senator Saavedra address us with a few words , please. Thank you, Mr. President. First, I want to thank the president for giving me the opportunity to use this state to talk with you for a couple of minutes. It is true what he mentioned, that it is an old aspiration, I am from Talcahuano. Therefore, the sea was a constant and recurring element for the activities that take place in a port city like Talcahuano and in the rest of the country, such as Valdivia. But today we are here at a different stage, completing a path that began many years ago. The sea and what we have to protect on those coasts requires, therefore, naval vessels, ports, it requires a national policy that is not only about shipbuilding, but at some point we must dream, Mr. President, of a Ministry of the Sea, just like the one for agriculture, that tremendous area that is 200 miles out to sea and the length of the country to Antarctica requires perhaps a different direction of public policies. To put the finishing touches on that, and then focus on this other idea of permanently building naval artifacts, developing human capital. Valdivia has it, it has its chair at the university, but we must also add the industrial high schools that allow us to have manioc technicians and as was said, my generation. These are the challenges we face, and I would say the peace of mind, the serenity, that we will continue with this policy, that there will therefore be the investments required so that here at ACEN, associated with ASMAR in Talcahuano and with the other locations where ASMAR is located, we will have the development of shipbuilding in continuous terms and thereby ensure not only stability in terms of construction, but also that the country will think differently about employability, a different kind of employment, employment based on adding value, adding intelligence, and taking a qualitative leap in the economy for the progress and well-being of all of Chile. Thank you so much. Thank you, Senator. [applause] Good morning. It is an honor and a joy to be back in Valdivia, a city with which I have had several decades of professional work and ties. President CAS has called for a government that looks to the future, taking all the experiences of the past, of our history, to build a better future for all Chileans with unity, with joint effort. And here we are in a situation that is an example. Senat, a company where entrepreneurship, effort, and efficiency have resulted in the creation of luxury vessels, high-quality vessels, vessels that allow Chile to project itself as a maritime country, as a tricontinental country. And that is not only a meritorious entrepreneurial effort, but also a collaborative effort with workers, professionals, and technicians who have made it possible to have a company that is a source of pride. We need to project that to the whole country in the maritime field and in all possible areas. The only way for this country to rise up and move forward is for us all to work together, to look to the future as Chileans, putting aside everything that divides us and strengthening what allows us to be proud of building ships like these. We appreciate the example set by SENAP, the work done by the workers who make these vessels possible, and we hope to generate a great future for the country. Thank you so much. Well, first of all, I want to greet those who today make it possible for Chile to be an example in the field of shipbuilding, which are the workers, the engineers, the technicians, the administrative staff, both here at ASENAF and at ASMAR, as well as the various shipyards. Thank you for that work that has been standing out internationally and today Chile is also becoming a benchmark for other nations. Say hello to Christine Cosman, the CEO of this company that, as I was asking her, started with her father. Ah. Hey. And I would ask him, "So, how did this start?" He would say to me, "Almost, please." My father, with a small team and a couple of workers, collaborators, became one of the largest and leading companies in Chile in shipbuilding. I want to acknowledge and thank them for their work and highlight that it is a company where many of the people who work have been with the same company for years and have been projecting this internationally. Thanks also to the Minister of Defense for taking the issue of continuous shipbuilding as something relevant to our nation. We are there, they told us, already meeting the deadlines we have to meet for the plan. Uh-huh. Well, but I think we're on the right track, thanks to the governor, not only for supporting and backing shipbuilding, as do the governors of Valparaíso, the governor of Biobío, the governor of Los Lagos, and the governor of Magallanes, who are joining the collaborative work of the municipalities. Five port, maritime, and shipyard municipalities are working together on this project because they know that if Valparaíso does well, Valdivia will do well. If Valdivia is going to do well, Puertoón is going to do well. If Puertomón does well, Talcahuano will do well. And if Talcahuano does well, Magallanes will do well. And that is what I also want to thank for: the cross-party presence of the Senate, of deputies, of each one of us who look to Chile. eh towards the future. This was the last region I had to visit, which I had not yet had the chance to visit. What better day than today? Uh-huh . It's clear, a very remarkable day, like in Valdivia, which is a city where it rains a lot, today it also welcomes us with some cold, but it welcomes us to showcase what maritime Chile is. It's 4,000 km of coastline. We are a maritime country, as the minister said, we are a tricontinental country. We often overlook Chile's tricontinental nature and for a long time we have lived with our backs to the sea. Not all of us were born in Talcahuano facing the sea. Well, some of us were born in rural areas, but Chile has turned its back on the sea and today we want to face the sea. We want Chile to once again look to the sea as a power, and for that border to be a source of development, employment, innovation, and sovereignty. And we want to do it from the regions. This is part of what the governor was talking about , a different perspective on how to manage our nation. Shipbuilding is a strategic sector for Chile and, as I say, for its regions. The ships, the boats created in the shipyards, which are large shipyards like this one and also smaller shipyards. There in Calbuco we see how there are smaller shipyards, but also that collaborate in the development of the country to have critical assets that not only serve for the defense of our seas and borders, but are also absolutely necessary for fishing, aquaculture, transport and also for the connectivity of extreme areas. The varcasas mobilize people, supply [clearing] food, goods, and deliver essential services. To places where geography makes it very difficult to reach by land. We need to build in Valparaíso, in Bigobío, in Los Ríos, in the lakes, in Magallanes. We need to build where our shipyards and ports are. That's why this alliance, and I thank you, Mayor, and I also thank the representative of the Mayor of Bertomón, and I am very grateful to the Mayor of Talcahuano who has accompanied us from yesterday until today , right? This is a milestone, because it is a milestone, in their willingness to do this cross-cutting work. The proposal is ambitious, huh, and at the same time simple. Ships that Chile needs, uh, that incorporate the technical aspect and that if we do it right, they will be ships that you don't just say, "Well, we'll buy a ship abroad, no, if we build it here, that ship means knowledge, as the mayor said, it means employment." They told us, "Well, today the plant has about 500 workers, but at full capacity it can reach 1000. They told us, "Well, that is very important for the region. It implies that suppliers, and they also told us how the greater the number of suppliers that can be incorporated into the construction of a ship, implies sovereignty, industrial capacity. Shipbuilding goes far beyond infrastructure and the need to protect sovereignty. It also generates technological development and specialized knowledge. In fact, here in Valdivia there is a naval engineering degree program, and I would like to highlight our congressman, who is a naval engineer and a graduate of this university. Well, we need to strengthen that, eh, if we have everything here. Here is one of the most modern projects that is already on its way to Magallanes, which is a tourist cruise ship that is characterized by being a hybrid between electric and diesel, and it leaves from here. That's cutting-edge technology. We see the tugboats that have been built here of different sizes, and each direct job in the construction of the ships creates between two and three indirect jobs in medium and small companies. The important thing is that they are local, local suppliers, because it gives movement to the region and there is no more effective social policy than work. Shipbuilding, as was also pointed out and reiterated to us in the previous meeting, requires planning and continuity thinking about the next 5, 10, 15 years. That is our challenge. And the minister, both the defense minister and the cabinet, is thinking about this. We need to boost shipbuilding in Chile. We need to become a hub for shipbuilding development, serving ships that come to the southern zone and providing them with the possibility of repairs and various alternatives to stay here. We have institutional stability, we have maritime experience, we have skilled workers, we have shipyards, we have ports, we have universities, we have a world-class aquaculture industry, we have the Strait of Magellan, which is the gateway or natural passage for all maritime trade, and we are the main gateway to Antarctica. As I say, we all have it, and countries develop not only when they think about the next budget, which is a debate we will have soon, but when they think about the next generation. And [clears throat] today, on the 11th, sorry, this September 11th, 6 months since we took office, we must say that thanks to the collaboration and also the discussion that enriches the discussion in Parliament, in the conversation and discussion with the governors, we have made significant progress on disaster issues. We have learned from the governors that the resources have to be there promptly. Regarding parliament, we have learned that every project we submit can be improved. I thank each and every one of you for your concern in moving Chile forward, beyond the legitimate differences we have. When there are things that unite us, we can move forward by looking at the quality of life of our fellow citizens. So let's keep working on these things, which, as the mayor said, focus on the fundamental issue that concerns us today, which is employment. I would like to thank the senators and parliamentarians for their initiative in promoting and supporting a continuous shipbuilding policy, because this is something we need to perfect and improve so that our nation can become a development hub for the region and the world in these areas as well. And that finally the Norwegians buy the tugboats from us and not the WBOR, sorry, and the welor from us, and that we become the suppliers for the Norwegians in the future. Many, many thanks to everyone for this historic moment, a historic milestone for Chile. So thank you very much. [applause]