Authorities and Globally Renowned Experts Analyzed the Traps Hindering Latin America and the Caribbean’s Development, at a High-level Seminar Held During ECLAC’s Fortieth Session

On the second day of the United Nations regional commission's most important biennial meeting - which is taking place in Lima, Peru - ministers from numerous countries in the region and prominent specialists debated how to achieve stronger and sustained growth and how to reduce inequality, among other issues.

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What are the vital transformations needed to overcome the development traps in which Latin America and the Caribbean is mired? And how can countries achieve stronger and sustained growth while also reducing inequality and fostering inclusion and social mobility? These pressing questions were addressed by authorities from numerous countries in the region and experts of recognized standing, on the second day of the Fortieth Session of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), which is taking place in Lima, Peru.

On this Thursday, October 10, a High-level Seminar began in the framework of the United Nations regional organization's most important biennial meeting, comprising four panel discussions that address the main issues set forth in ECLAC's position document Development Traps in Latin America and the Caribbean: Vital Transformations and How to Manage Them, which was presented on the event's opening day (Wednesday, October 9) by the organization's Executive Secretary, José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs.

The first three panels of the seminar addressed development traps in Latin America and the Caribbean and the vital transformations needed; how to achieve stronger, sustained, inclusive and sustainable growth; and how to reduce inequality and foster inclusion and social mobility. The fourth panel discussion, on how to promote sustainability and address climate change, will take place on Friday, October 11, which is the final day of ECLAC's 40th Session.

The first panel addressing the development traps - which was moderated by Giofianni Diglio Peirano Torriani, Chair of the Board of Directors of the Center for Strategic Planning (CEPLAN) of Peru - featured the participation of Albert Ramdin, Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Business and International Cooperation of Suriname; Ángela Yesenia Olaya Requene, Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation of Colombia; Luis Felipe López-Calva, Global Director of the Poverty and Equity Global Practice at the World Bank (virtually); and José Antonio Ocampo, Professor at the School of International and Public Affairs of Columbia University.

They debated about development strategies anchored in the State that would enable overcoming the traps that hamper the achievement of more growth, less inequality and better environmental sustainability. In this area, issues such as foresight for managing risks and education for fostering social cohesion and mobility, as well as sustainable development, are critical. Also fundamental are an intersectional approach for working on problems at a local level and closing the gaps that exist within territories; investment in science and technology; the competitiveness and capacities of Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs); the promotion of development banks at a national level; advances in biotechnology; and, above all, the need to address these issues in an interdisciplinary fashion, with sufficient adaptation capacity to mitigate risks, as well as to work together on financing that would support the economy and allow for developing companies' capacity for innovation, which in turn would close social gaps and leverage political systems. Ultimately, this is about achieving comprehensive development, as ECLAC indicates in its document, the panelists emphasized.

The 2nd panel on how to achieve stronger, sustained, inclusive and sustainable growth was moderated by José Berley Arista Arbildo, Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance of Peru, and included presentations by Pável Isa, Minister of Economic Affairs, Planning and Development of the Dominican Republic; Ernesto Stein, Distinguished Professor of Public Policy at the Tecnológico de Monterrey University in Mexico; Bettina Woll de Montenach, Resident Representative of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Peru; and Tomás Lopes-Teixeira, Representative of the Inter-American Development Bank Group (IDB Group) in Peru.

These panelists concurred that governments are the main protagonists for creating the conditions enabling an economy to grow, generate equality and also fiscal, tax and price stability. They emphasized that in the last decade, per capita income in Latin America and the Caribbean has grown by a mere 1%, which intensifies the need for a productive transformation, meaning a structural change based on economies' diversification; the adoption of new technologies; collaboration between the public and private sectors, academia and civil society, which is essential for carrying out all the necessary transformations; and economic growth that facilitates social inclusion. "The success of our policies will hinge on our ability to implement structural changes in an inclusive and sustainable way… There are no easy solutions, but there is a clear course: transforming our economies, improving social equality and protecting the environment are some of the pillars on which we must build our future," they indicated.

On the 3rd panel addressing how to reduce inequality and foster inclusion and social mobility - moderated by Julio Javier Demartini Montes, Minister of Development and Social Inclusion of Peru - the speakers were Laís Abramo, National Secretary for Care and Family at the Ministry of Social Development and Assistance, Family Affairs and the Fight against Hunger of Brazil; Kirk D.M. Humphrey, Minister of People Empowerment and Elder Affairs of Barbados; Isabel Román, General Coordinator of the report on the state of education prepared under the State of the Nation Program of Costa Rica; and Florencia Torche, Edwards S. Sanford Professor of Public and International Affairs and Sociology at Princeton University.

In this instance, the participants indicated that they agree with the proposals in ECLAC's report that serve as the basis for this meeting's debates, and especially with its main conclusion: that inequality and the lack of social mobility and cohesion conspire against development, exacerbate social exclusion and further complicate the severe problems that the region is experiencing today, such as a lack of sustained growth with high productivity, a deterioration in the well-being of broad segments of the population, and threats to democracy and problems in relation to citizen security and environmental sustainability. They also discussed how to overcome these difficulties, particularly the need for the State to design social policies that can be implemented in the long term, beyond the specific periods of each government. In addition, they addressed the importance of education, public health, comprehensive care policies and, ultimately, of balancing economic growth with social growth.

The Fortieth Session of ECLAC will continue on Friday, October 11 with the High-level Seminar's fourth panel, on how to promote sustainability and address climate change, and with submission of the report on the activities of ECLAC's subsidiary bodies and the outcomes of other intergovernmental meetings organized by ECLAC since its 39th Session.

Officials will also present a report on the activities of the Commission, 2023, along with the draft programme of work for the ECLAC system, 2026. After that, the meeting's resolutions will be submitted to delegates for their consideration and approval and the event's closing session will be held.

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