Therefore, Latin American countries recognized the political need for a joint, international agreement if they were going to eradicate Chagas disease.  This need culminated with the Southern Cone Initiative which was signed in 1991 and sponsored by the PAHO.  As noted earlier, the six countries that fall within the Southern Cone are Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay.  However, the government of Peru decided to join this initiative after the initial signing of the agreement.