King Felipe VI presents Ibero-American secretariat with 2026 Premio Fórum Europa award

An award at El Pardo

King Felipe VI presided on Friday, 6 November 2026, over a ceremony at the El Pardo palace where Nueva Economía Fórum presented its Premio Fórum Europa 2026 to the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB). The prize honoured the people who have led the body: Enrique V. Iglesias (2005-2014), who could not attend and took part by video, Rebeca Grynspan (2014-2021) and the current secretary general, Andrés Allamand. The jury chose one joint award for the three of them. According to La Razón, the presidents of the Senate, the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court applauded the speech, and Vice President Sara Aagensen attended.

Praise for the three secretaries general

The king described the three as sharing "a proven vocation for service, an exemplary political career and a firm commitment to multilateralism". He also cited their "spirit of work" and the "fervour" they have shown for the Ibero-American project. Grynspan, who leads UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) and is a candidate to succeed António Guterres at the United Nations, used her speech to warn about the crisis of multilateralism. She argued for a multipolar world combined with international cooperation and asked the UN to treat organised crime as a matter of peace and security.

“Being equal without ceasing to be different.”

Grynspan used that phrase to sum up how the member countries can unite without losing their own identities. Allamand, the current secretary general, said he would take on the task of using what he called a "stellar moment" for Ibero-America in an "unstable world".

Ten leaders and a joint declaration

The XXX Ibero-American Summit opened in Madrid on Wednesday, 4 November, and ran until Thursday, 5 November. El Mundo reported that ten heads of state and government attended, compared with four at the previous summit, a rise that the Royal Household and the government both presented as a success. The leaders agreed a joint declaration on Thursday despite ideological differences, among them Chile's José Antonio Kast, Argentina's Javier Milei and Spain's Pedro Sánchez. Felipe VI cited agreements on recognising academic degrees, treating care as a right, a coordinated response to natural disasters and a new strategic design for cooperation.

XXX summit (2026)10

Previous summit4

XXX summit (2026)

10 leaders

Previous summit

4 leaders

Data from the article text

What the king said about the future

Felipe VI called SEGIB the "spinal cord" of the summit system and described it as a steady commitment to the region's future. He said Ibero-America could reach even greater cohesion and political coordination, and that the work of the secretariat is what shows this is possible.

“We can have even more voice on the big global issues, as befits our population, our resources and our cultural wealth.”

The king added that Ibero-America is not a static identity. He said the region must learn to be Ibero-American and that many people present had spent their lives on that learning. He also warned that keeping the shared flame alive is hard in current times, while insisting that the summit had once again delivered. According to the king, the follow-up to the agreements falls largely to SEGIB once the leaders have left Madrid.