This intergovernmental event is organized by ECLAC in conjunction with the United Nations Development Programme’s 17th Ministerial Forum for Development in Latin America and the Caribbean.

On September 2-4, 2025, the Sixth Session of the Regional Conference on Social Development in Latin America and the Caribbean will take place in Brasilia, organized by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), the government of Brazil and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), which will hold its 17th Ministerial Forum for Development in Latin America and the Caribbean simultaneously.

The Regional Conference – which will bring together senior authorities from social ministries and related entities in the region’s countries – is a key space for dialogue and cooperation between governments, international organizations, academia and civil society to move towards more inclusive, just and sustainable social development in the region.

At this intergovernmental meeting, ECLAC will present the document  Latin America and the Caribbean 30 Years on from the World Summit for Social Development: Towards a Global Pact for Inclusive Social Development, which proposes a critical and proactive perspective regarding the region’s progress and challenges in relation to social development and social cohesion, poverty reduction and the strengthening of social protection systems, from 1995 to the present.

The programme includes five high-level panels that will address critical issues such as: poverty, hunger and the trap of high inequality, low mobility and weak social cohesion; social protection and care systems; the exercise of rights to health and education; social resilience; and emerging challenges such as climate change, population ageing and technological transformation – all topics identified as priorities in the document that will be presented at the event and in the Regional Agenda for Inclusive Social Development, approved in 2019.

Prior to the start of official activities, on Monday, September 1, civil society will meet. There will also be a series of side events taking place.

In addition, a special statement is planned regarding the road to the World Social Summit 2025 (November 4-6, Qatar) by Li Junhua, Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations.

Journalists interested in covering this event in person must get accredited via the following link. Those professionals whose registration has been accepted by the organizers will be able to pick up their credentials as of Monday, September 1, upon presenting their official IDs and/or press identification.

All available information on the Conference, including the programme and press registration, can be found on this special website: https://crds.cepal.org/6/en

WHAT: Sixth Session of the Regional Conference on Social Development in Latin America and the Caribbean.

WHEN: Tuesday, September 2 through Thursday, September 4, 2025.

WHO: Senior authorities from social ministries and related entities in the region’s countries and representatives of international organizations, academia and civil society.

WHERE: Headquarters of the Servicio Federal de Procesamiento de Datos (SERPRO). (Sector de Grandes Áreas Norte (SGAN), Cuadra 601, Módulo V, Ala Norte, Brasilia. Federal District, 70836-900, Brazil).