This document is a summary of the Natural Resources Outlook in Latin America and the Caribbean, a forthcoming publication which aims to raise awareness and promote debate on the role of renewable and non-renewable natural resources in the transition to a more sustainable development model. Natural resources play an important role in the economic development of Latin America and the Caribbean. The region is home to almost 20% of the world’s oil reserves, at least 25% of its reserves of certain strategic metals and more than 30% of its primary forests. Natural-resource-based economic activities account for 12% of added value, 16% of employment and 50% of exports in the region. Renewable resources such as water and energy are key transformative vectors for economic growth with sustainable development and have great potential to create new industries and improve the well-being of local communities. In the current context of cascading crises, it is essential to rethink the contribution of natural resources to economic recovery and structural change. The region must shift towards a more sustainable and equitable development model that incorporates this reconsidered role of natural resources.

This paper examines trends in intergenerational class mobility for six birth cohorts of individuals born between 1921 and 1981, observed in surveys carried out in 1973, 1982, 1988, 1996 and 2014. Besides analysing the variation of trends on the basis of three temporal dimensions —age, birth cohort and survey year— the paper determines the effects of educational attainment on intergenerational mobility. The analysis reveals a historical trend of increasing social mobility across birth cohorts in Brazil. The effects of educational attainment are determined by three mechanisms: educational expansion, equality of educational opportunities and returns to education. While educational expansion is the main mechanism responsible for increasing mobility among the three younger cohorts of persons born between 1951 and 1981, the other two mechanisms play minor roles. In the period under review, the origin-destination class association, net of educational attainment, also declined and contributed to the increasing intergenerational mobility trend. Nevertheless, the expansion of higher education is the main reason for the increase in social mobility. This paper also examines racial disparities in intergenerational mobility. Despite the impressive educational expansion and increased mobility opportunities observed overall, the racial gap in intergenerational mobility opportunities does not change over time, with black people facing a greater probability of downward mobility.

Latin America and the Caribbean and the European Union have a rich history of cooperation and share common values and interests such that cooperation is the natural path for responding to the major challenges facing the countries of the region and the international system. In this document, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) analyses areas for investment and cooperation in strategic sectors, offers assessments, identifies opportunities and proposes work and policy agendas. The region faces significant challenges in the areas analysed, which include energy transition and digital transformation, but it has also made important progress and there is potential to strengthen partnerships that benefit Latin American and Caribbean countries and European Union countries alike. The Third Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) and the European Union, which will be held in Brussels on 17 and 18 July 2023, is a valuable opportunity for both country groupings to deepen and strengthen their strategic partnerships. This document aims to facilitate this path, foster a better understanding of the strategic areas of opportunity and support the definition of tangible projects and action that will make these and other opportunities a reality in the near future.

As the Caribbean subregion seeks to implement strategies for meeting its obligations under the Paris Agreement, the sustainable development of its land transportation subsector has emerged as a significant challenge. This relates to both the need to reduce green house gas emissions, for which the subsector is a major emitter, as well as the necessity for reducing its overall dependence on imported fossil energy. While several policy initiatives have sought to address these issues, the evidence of growing land transportation problems now motivates a closer examination of challenges in the subsector. Among the main issues are increasing motor vehicle concentrations in small island spaces and growing traffic congestion arising from increased private motor vehicle ownership. All of these factors operate to produce economic, social and environmental burdens such as growing imports of vehicles, fuel and spare parts; increased motor vehicle accidents and mortality; and socially deviant behaviors such as road rage. Given the pivotal role of transportation in the advancement of economies and society, this paper suggests policy options for improving land transportation efficiency and sustainability in the Caribbean. This study also seeks to add to the very limited literature related to the issue of land transportation in Small Island Developing States.

This report assess the situation of older persons and reviews the actions taken in Caribbean countries and territories, particularly over the past five years, to implement the Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing and related regional agreements. It contributes to the global and regional reviews of the Plan of Action, 20 years on from its adoption in 2002, and includes recommendations to further address population ageing and the rights of older persons in the Caribbean.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic, and the response to it, have brought to light the importance of care for the sustainability of life, and the central role that care plays in the functioning of our economies and societies. The pandemic has exacerbated existing care needs, transformed conditions of paid and unpaid care work and, ultimately, increased the volume of women’s unpaid care work, deepening the associated gender gaps. This study brings together evidence from across the globe on how the pandemic has impacted women’s unpaid care work, as well as exploring measures implemented by governments and the degree to which these mainstream a gender perspective. As the pandemic moves into its third year, these different experiences point to an opportunity to incorporate unpaid work and gender into recovery efforts, highlighting the care sector as an important driving force for building back better with more equality.

This overview examines the economic performance of economies of the Caribbean in 2021 and comprises four chapters. The first chapter provides a comparative analysis across Caribbean economies of the main macroeconomic variables, namely GDP growth, monetary indicators, as well as fiscal and external accounts. The second chapter concludes, while the annex includes individual country briefs that give an overview of the economic situation for the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and a subregional assessment of the countries of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union.

In the aftermath of the global financial crisis (2008–2009), the external financing needs of Latin America and the Caribbean increased significantly, reflecting a process of external debt accumulation in all developing regions, exacerbated by the impacts of COVID-19. The region is now the most indebted in the developing world, with a debt profile that makes it highly vulnerable to changes in international lending conditions and to perceptions of risk. This has placed a major constraint on government responses to the COVID-19 emergency and undermines their capacity to build forward better. This document considers two proposals to address these challenges: (i) expand and redistribute liquidity from developed to developing countries through innovative uses of SDRs; and (ii) expand the set of innovative instruments to increase debt repayment capacity and avoid over-indebtedness.

Serie monográfica que reúne un conjunto de documentos resultantes de los estudios e investigaciones de la CEPAL.

The current economic and social challenges in Latin America and the Caribbean have highlighted both the region’s structural problems and the urgent need to find new drivers of economic growth. The old approaches to economic development will not enable Latin America and the Caribbean to overcome the present-day economic, health and climate crises. Governments must set bold goals and work with willing private sector partners to promote a truly sustainable and inclusive economy. By advancing mission-oriented industrial policies, countries can stimulate cooperation, diversify production, increase productivity and direct economic growth that is both sustainable and inclusive. There is a unique opportunity to shape economic development that maximizes public benefits through mission-driven innovation, better use of available tools, smart public-private partnerships and purpose-driven institutions, underpinned by a strong public service, results-based evaluation, inclusive stakeholder engagement and a commitment to a renewed social contract. The mission-driven industrial strategy is about imbuing governments and economies of the region with a new sense of purpose and ensuring that everyone in society benefits from the structural changes ahead.

Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) is important in advancing sustainable development across the globe. One approach available to countries to promote their sustainable development agendas is the advancement of STI to support the adoption of renewable energy technologies. The continued reliance on fossil fuels in the Caribbean is one of the factors hindering the rate at which countries within the subregion are developing. Taking this into account, this study assesses whether the advancement of STI is driving the energy transition in the Caribbean subregion and draws lessons on how STI can better support the subregion’s sustainable development agenda.

These are chiefly monographs reporting on research findings and technical studies financed by donors. Published in more flexible formats than the other collections, they often form the basis for more extensive publications in the future.

A series of monographs bringing together documents arising from ECLAC studies and research.

This overview examines the economic performance of economies of the Caribbean in 2021 and comprises four chapters. The first chapter provides a comparative analysis across Caribbean economies of the main macroeconomic variables, namely GDP growth, monetary indicators, as well as fiscal and external accounts. The second chapter concludes, while the annex includes individual country briefs that give an overview of the economic situation for the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname, Trinidad and Tobago, and a subregional assessment of the countries of the Eastern Caribbean Currency Union.