The Global Cement & Concrete Association (GCCA) and its regional affiliate Federación Interamericana del Cemento (FICEM) have launched a program to accelerate the ‘decarbonization’ of the Latin American cement and concrete industry.

The initiative was announced at the Latin America and the Caribbean Climate Week (LACCW 2022) which was held from 18th – 22nd July in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

The GCCA, which launched a 2050 net-zero global industry roadmap last year, has member companies around the world, including companies from Latin America such as Cemex, Cementos Argos, Cementos Progreso, GCC, Votorantim,and Pacasmayo and Unacem, along with FICEM’s members which include Domicem and Melon.

GCCA and FICEM will now work in partnership to reduce the industry’s carbon footprint in the region with Colombia joining Egypt, Thailand and India in the first wave of GCCA’s Net Zero Accelerator initiative.

The Accelerator program aims to identify the barriers to decarbonization in target countries and recommend key actions. This includes encouraging government policies that can have an immediate impact, such as better recycling, the use of waste as an alternative to fossil fuels and other ‘circular economy’ practices.