Miami.– More than 8,000 attendees including President George Bush, the presidents of Mexico and Brazil, pop star Ricky Martin and Microsoft’s Bill Gates are expected for this year’s meeting of the Inter-American Development Bank in Miami.

The April 4-8 meeting at the Miami Beach Convention Center is being dubbed as one of the biggest business events ever in South Florida. It's the first time the meeting convenes in Florida since 1987 and the first with a strong business and philanthropic focus.

The host committee aims to provide $7 million in cash and in-kind contributions for the mega-event, and about half of that has been secured from companies in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties, chairman Jorge Arrizurieta said.

The meeting comes as the Washington-based bank funded by governments shifts its focus under new leadership. The IDB now seeks to boost the role of business and philanthropy to help develop economies in Latin America and the Caribbean.

The IDB features 47 countries as members, with 26 nations that borrow its funds. In 2007, the bank approved $9 billion in new financing, the largest volume since 1999. It long has ranked as the top source of multilateral finance for the Latin American region.