Understanding poverty from a gender perspective

What is poverty, how to measure it and how to tackle it, are the three questions to which this document responds, on the basis of the theoretical framework of gender studies. The harmonization of policies for economic growth, social equity and gender equity is a challenge that can no longer be ignored. Poverty is considered as the result of power relations that first of all affect men and women in a different way, but then also indigenous and Afro-descendent women, older adults and the inhabitants of certain areas. The multidimensional nature of this phenomenon is shown, as well as the virtues…

Socio-economic impacts of natural disasters: a gender analysis

This document was prepared by Sarah Bradshaw, consultant for the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), under the supervision of the Women and Development Unit, in close collaboration with the Sustainable Development and Human Settlements Division and the ECLAC Subregional Headquarters in Mexico City, in the framework of the Project Improve damage assessment methodology to promote natural disaster mitigation and risk reduction awareness and preparedness in Latin America and the Caribbean (ITA/99/130). The paper analyses the socio-economic effects of hurricane Mi…

Social Panorama of Latin America 2002-2003

The 2002-2003 edition of the Social panorama of Latin America explores issues related to many of the Millennium Development Goals. Three of the five chapters (on poverty, hunger and gender inequality) assess how likely it is that the countries of the region will succeed in meeting the targets in these areas agreed upon by the States Members of the United Nations for 2015. One of the chapters that refers to the Millennium Development Goals deals with hunger and food insecurity. This chapter, which was produced in collaboration with the World Food Programme, provides information on …

A methodological approach to gender analysis in natural disaster assessment: a guide for the Caribbean

The Caribbean region is highly prone to natural disasters, with he increased occurrence in recent years of hurricanes, storms, floods, storm surges and volcanic eruptions. These bring about the loss of lives, property and employment, and damage to the physical infrastructure and the environment. The poor are generally the most vulnerable to the impact of natural disasters, and it is the women and children among them who are often the hardest hit. These impacts are likely to be amplified by a country's particular development patterns, with the level of vulnerability of social groups influe…

Capital flows to Latin America: fourth quarter 2003

In the fourth quarter of 2003, net capital flows to emerging markets accelerated sharply to reach a 3-year high of US$187 billion, a 50% increase from the US$124 billion reached in 2002. This increase is the result of the combination of abundant global liquidity, strong economic growth, and the improving credit quality of borrowers in both mature and emerging markets. Emerging markets were favored by moderate volatility, low risk-free interest rates and rising commodity prices. In addition, a weak US dollar, solid cash flows and search for yield supported the rally to Latin American countries.…

In search of work. International migration of women in Latin America and the Caribbean. Selected bibliography

This selected bibliography on the migration of women in Latin America and the Caribbean in search of work forms part of the activities of the ECLAC/GTZ project Gender oriented labour market policy , whose main objective is to promote the implementation of measures in favour of equality in employment and labour market policies. In recent decades, a large number of the region's inhabitants have emigrated to more economically developed countries. More recently still, we have seen the phenomenon of intraregional migration flows, which, from the 1980s onwards, have increasingly come…

A decade of social development in Latin America, 1990-1999

The final decade of the twentieth century was a momentous one for Latin America, as it witnessed sweeping changes that represented a turning point with regard to previous trends in the region. The most important of these changes were the revival of economic growth and the reduction of poverty in the initial years of that period. Another significant phenomenon was the impact of international crises on the Latin American countries, especially in the second half of the decade. This book analyses what happened in the countries between 1990 and 1999 and revisits issues of interest to ECLAC, using t…

Challenges in meeting the monitoring requirements of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): an examination of selected social statistics for four Caribbean small island developing states

This document seeks to characterise the challenges faced by Caribbean countries in meeting the monitoring requirements of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). An examination and analysis of infrastructural capacity and key data issues are presented. Requirements for capacity building in the field of social statistics in the subregion are also explored. Selected social indicators of the MDGs, accompanied by technical notes, definitions and relevant discussions on the indicators are detailed. The sources of data are the 1990 and 2000/2001 population census of the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize an…

Human rights and trafficking in persons in the Americas: summary and highlights of the Hemispheric Conference on International Migration

Abstract The present document consists of an overview and discussion of the highlights of the Hemispheric Conference on International Migration: Human Rights and the Trafficking in Persons in the Americas, which was held in Santiago, Chile, from the 20th to the 22th November 2002. The introduction presents the background, objectives and organizational aspects of the meeting and gives an account of the opening ceremony. This is followed by a summary of the presentations and comments, with highlights of each session. Under the highlights, we have included also the statements of participants, …

Capital flows to Latin America: third quarter 2002

Brazil's electoral outlook and the external backdrop were the main drivers of Latin American credits in the third quarter of 2002, thus the performance of Latin American markets continued to be pressured by Brazil's fate and the ebb and flow of investors' risk appetite. The region had a rare month of outperformance in August, as the prompt negotiation of an IMF agreement for Brazil and the moderation of global risk aversion brought strong returns for Brazil, in particular, and for countries considered high-risks in general. However, risk aversion peaked again in September, retur…

Preliminary Economic Overview of Caribbean Economies

Capital flows to Latin America: third quarter 2003

In the third quarter of 2003, investors continued to favor riskier assets buoyed by abundant global liquidity, low interest rates in mature markets, strong economic growth (with low inflation), and improving credit quality. Credit spreads in emerging and Latin American markets narrowed in response, by 41 and 56 basis points, respectively, and are near historical lows in most emerging market countries. The EMBI+ index is well below its long run average, according to J.P Morgan. Issuers in emerging markets and Latin America benefited from the decline in spreads, as well as from the greater inter…

Eliminating gender-based violence ensuring equality: ECLAC/UNIFEM assessment of actions

This study represents a collaborative effort by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean and the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) to assess these actions with the aim of informing the future work of these agencies around gender-based violence. An important dimension of the mandate of the ECLAC Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean is the provision of strategic thinking and information to governments for policy formulation. This is accomplished through technical assistance and through research activitie…

Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean 2002-2003

Selected statistical indicators of Caribbean countries, vol. XVI, 2003

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean and Secretariat to the Caribbean Development and Cooperation Committee (CDCC), is pleased to present the seventeenth volume of the Selected Statistical Indicators of Caribbean Countries (SSI). This publication represents a compilation of original nationally produced and officially published statistics on select indicators for the year 2003. Where available, 2004 and 2005 figures have been included. The aim of the SSI is to serve as a single source of Caribbean statistics on national…

CARIBTRADE, trade statistics database: user manual

Describes the Caribbean Trade Statistics Database, explaining the reasons for its creation. Identifies its functions and capabilities. Outlines the process of design, listing the design considerations. Provides detailed instructions for navigation of the system. Presents an overview of the current content of the database. Provides a reference guide of terms used in the analysis of trade indicators.…

Criteria for the efficient coordination of the activities for data collection and the design of instruments for mapping and data collection applicable to countries of the Caribbean

The paper highlights the importance of good economic and social data to measure the change in the economy and the society in the light of external stimuli. It also highlights the need for governments to base policy decisions on good data. The paper discusses the issues of design and coordination of data collection mechanisms in a manner that optimizes the limited resources available for data collection and ensures that the data collected fit into an information mosaic that enables planning. To the extent that knowledge of self is the first step towards self-actualization, the success of any s…

Capital flows to Latin America: second quarter 2003

In the first half of 2003, emerging debt markets rallied, as disillusionment with equities, geopolitical concerns, and doubts about growth prospects led investors to shift from equities in favor of fixed incomes securities. As equity prices in the United States struggled early in the year, and the price of U.S. Treasuries rose to a 40-year high, attention was drawn to emerging market assets. Emerging debt markets were driven by liquidity, rising risk tolerance, a search for yield and a wider investor acceptance of the asset class. As a consequence, credit spreads on emerging market bonds narr…

The gender dimension of economic globalization: an annotated bibliography

Capital flows to Latin America: second quarter 2002

In the second quarter of 2002, conditions in global financial markets worsened as investor confidence deteriorated and risk aversion heightened. The revelation of corporate accounting irregularities in mature markets negatively affected investors' sentiment, causing a rebalance of portfolios in favor of higher quality assets and away from equities and low-grade bonds. Countries seen as higher risk were adversely affected by this rebalancing of portfolios. A number of Latin American countries were the focus of investors' concerns, in particular Brazil, where developments during the se…