La inversión extranjera directa (IED); y el medio ambiente son dos de los aspectos de mayor relevancia en los acuerdos de libre comercio que se han venido suscribiendo en el continente americano a partir de los años noventa. La convergencia de estos dos temas cobra una gran importancia ante la preocupación cada vez más latente por establecer mecanismos para fomentar la IED de una manera acorde con las políticas de protección ambiental, con el objeto de que este tipo de inversiones se conviertan en una herramienta eficaz en la búsqueda de las metas de desarrollo sustentable.
Sin duda alguna, Mé…
Uno de los temas presentes en la Cumbre Mundial sobre Desarrollo Sostenible celebrada en Johannesburgo en Septiembre del 2002 fue el de la Responsabilidad Social Corporativa (RSC);. La definición de responsabilidad social ha estado vinculada al desarrollo de las actividades de la empresa, asumiendo la responsabilidad de los impactos que genera, creando con ello valor para sus accionistas y la sociedad a través del empleo de buenas prácticas . Otras definiciones del concepto enfatizan la contribución de la empresa al desarrollo económico sostenible a través de su colaboración con dis…
La regularización ha sido objeto de múltiples programas desde hace varias décadas, pero aún son escasas las evaluaciones sobre los mismos. Si bien algunos de los países de la región implementaban programas de regularización desde hace décadas, la Conferencia de las Naciones Unidas sobre los Asentamientos Humanos (Hábitat II); llevada a cabo en Estambul en 1996, donde se definió la Seguridad de la Tenencia como una de las dos políticas básicas a desarrollar a nivel mundial, ha tenido gran repercusión en los distintos países y se han comenzado programas de regularización, muchos de ellos con fin…
En este documento se describe, en primer lugar, la importancia social y económica de las pequeñas y medianas empresas (pyme) en Argentina; sus principales impactos ambientales y las iniciativas de gestión ambiental que se observan en ellas. Los sectores más relevantes, el marco regulatorio, las disponibilidades de financiamiento y otras iniciativas son analizadas, en el marco de importantes limitaciones de información. Enseguida se presenta un conjunto de estudios de casos de empresas que han hecho avances en la materia, reflexionando sobre las barreras que limitan estos desarrollos. Se muestr…
Factores tanto de la oferta (tendencias demográficas y educativas); como de la demanda (un sesgo en favor de las personas con mayores niveles educativos); hacían esperar que la posición relativa de los y las jóvenes en el mercado de trabajo mejorara durante los años noventa. Sin embargo, para las nuevas cohortes entrantes al mercado de trabajo la inserción laboral llegó a ser cada vez más difícil. Por otra parte, la situación laboral relativa de los y las jóvenes respecto a los adultos parece no haber cambiado mucho, de manera que el empeoramiento absoluto fue más que todo el resultado de la e…
Latin America has a long history of political violence that include civil wars; guerrilla movements, military intervention, coup d'état, terrorism and others form of violent confrontation. As conflict and terrorism (C-T) produces losses of human lives and destroy assets and property there is an obvious need for prevention and insurance against this kind of risk. Insurance can be provided by both the state and by the market. In countries subject to long and violent conflict there is need for direct provision of insurance and compensation to the victims of conflict and their families. Howe…
Position paper responsável pela sugestão da agenda positiva para o Encontro Internacional de Atração de Investimento Direto Externo, realizado em 2004, fundamentando-se nos seguintes tópicos: (i) apresentação de uma resenha dos trabalhos realizados recentemente no setor de fármacos no Brasil; (ii) detalhamento e análise do desempenho recente do setor, da estrutura das empresas (saída, entradas, fusões, novos investidores etc.), do comércio exterior, (balança comercial do setor, principais mercados, fornecedores internacionais etc.), e os principais pontos em debate no setor (demanda, po…
O conceito bem de capital é uma categoria importante para a análise econômica na medida em que representa a principal dimensão do investimento produtivo. A incorporação de bem de capital ao processo produtivo pode implicar na ampliação da capacidade da economia crescer, além do fato de que o bem de capital é portador de conhecimento, pois incorpora tecnologia. Desta forma, os bens de capital - máquinas e equipamentos - são considerados transmissores de progresso técnico para seus usuários. Conseqüentemente, o bem de capital tanto amplia a capacidade produtiva como viabiliza o aumento de produt…
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…
Access to Latin American and Caribbean Exports in the United States market, 2001-2002 is the eighth annual report released by the ECLAC Washington Office, updating information contained in previous reports. Its aim is to compile and make available information on trade inhibiting measures that Latin American and Caribbean exports encounter in the United States market. This report needs to be placed in the context of a trade relationship between the United States and Latin America and the Caribbean, which has grown strongly over the years to the benefit of both economies. Moreover, it must be …
This document provides an overview of the most relevant developments in United States trade policy relating to Latin America and the Caribbean in 2003. U.S. policy continued to promote trade liberalization through advancing negotiations on multiple fronts- globally (WTO), regionally (FTAA) and bilaterally (Chile and CAFTA)- with a view that the various negotiations are mutually reinforcing and seek to create a constructive competition for liberalization among trade partners. The Trade Promotion Authority (TPA) provided an impetus to the signing and Congressional approval of bilateral free t…
El trabajo tiene por objeto facilitar la concertación sobre política fiscal y gestión presupuestal en el marco del Acuerdo Nacional, suscrito por un amplio espectro de organizaciones políticas, sociales, laborales y empresariales, en julio de 2002, al concluir el primer año de gestión de un nuevo gobierno democrático en el Perú. Dicho acuerdo por la composición y representatividad de las organizaciones y por el carácter y contenido de sus 20 políticas de Estado, constituye una experiencia inédita en la historia republicana del Perú, que puede servir de referencia a otros países de la región.
E…
From November 2001 to April 2003, the International
Monetary Fund grappled with a radical proposal, the
Sovereign Debt Restructuring Mechanism, for handling the
external debt of insolvent governments of developing and
transition economies. That proposal was rejected, but new
collective action clauses that address some of the
difficulties in restructuring bond debt are being introduced.
In addition, IMF is developing a pragmatic and eclectic
approach to assessing debt sustainability that can be useful
to governments and creditors. However, many of the
problems in restructuring sover…
This article puts forth a hypothesis and a challenge.
The hypothesis: structural change in the international economy and in the management of public policy has brought about changes in economic performance, affected employment,
poverty, and equity and resulted in greater insecurity and
uncertainty. The challenge: coping with this insecurity and
uncertainty despite public policy's abandonment of its
historical role and the lack of success thus far of the new
approaches. This study points to the greater vulnerability
today stemming from the labour market as well as
asymmetries in trends in …
Social protection systems have to cope with large
discrepancies between the financing needed to cover demand
and the resources actually available. For this reason, it is
necessary for any reform proposal to include elements of
cost restraint as well as measures to increase the population
coverage of systems. Efficiency and solidarity must improve
together if progress is to be made towards universality of
benefits. Any reform strategy needs to consider not only the
financial constraints imposed by the macroeconomy, but also
the heavy drain on financial resources and the effects on the
fiscal ac…
Stable development and financing of the social protection
system, one of the priorities of fiscal policy in Chile over
recent years, has helped to reduce poverty and indigence,
particularly since the 1990s. The fiscal accounts have been
managed prudently, and budgetary balance and efficient
administration have been given priority over short-term
objectives. Even so, poverty is still a fact of life and the
poor are still vulnerable to drastic falls in income. This means
that an effort is still required to modernize fiscal policy and
develop new institutional arrangements for the social
protecti…
This article sets out to describe the main features of the new
farm legislation in the United States, assess the extent to
which it conforms to World Trade Organization (WTO); rules,
and provide a preliminary assessment of its impact on Latin
America. The article first looks at the new United States
Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002, identifying
the different mechanisms used to support the country's farm
producers. It then analyses that Act, referred to hereinafter
as the 2002 Farm Act, in the light of the rules established
and the commitments made in the Uruguay Round of the…
This article examines the long-run relationship between
export performance and economic growth in three Central
American countries from 1950 to 1999. Therefore, it
excludes the recent years of slowdown in the world economy,
2000-2002. The cointegration analysis supports the view that
the external sector has been a key determinant of these
countries' long-run rate of economic growth. The article also
suggests that the trade liberalization experiences seen since
the mid-1980s have had very disparate impacts on these
countries' long-run rates of economic growth. Lastly, the
implications…
For the last two decades, microfinance has ranked high on
the list of policy instruments for fighting poverty. Supporting
the creation of access to formal financial services for low-income
households holds out the promise of improving the
living conditions of poor families and fostering economic
development. Furthermore, it is claimed to be a very cost-effective
approach because some non-governmental
organizations (NGOs); that have been upscaled into
microbanks have shown that financial services can be offered
to low-income households while covering costs and even
earning a moderate profit. Re…
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…