ONU seguirá apoyando a Guatemala en su lucha contra la impunidad y la inseguridad

(17 de marzo, 2011) "La ONU y el Gobierno están trabajando juntos para la seguridad, los derechos humanos y la justicia", dijo el Secretario General de las Naciones Unidas, Ban Ki-moon, durante su visita de dos días a Guatemala, que concluye este jueves. El máximo representante de la ONU arribó el martes por la noche a Ciudad de Guatemala, la capital del país, donde sostuvo diversos encuentros con representantes políticos y sociales. Lo acompañaron, como parte de su comitiva, la Secretaria Ejecutiva de la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL), Alicia Bárcena, el Director R…

The United States and Latin America and the Caribbean: highlights of economy and trade

Esta publicación es una contribución de la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL); al análisis de las relaciones comerciales y de inversiones entre los Estados Unidos y América Latina y el Caribe, con motivo de la visita del Presidente Barack Obama al Brasil, Chile y El Salvador en marzo de 2011. Los primeros años de esta nueva década han sido portadores de buenas noticias para América Latina y el Caribe. La región ha demostrado una capacidad de recuperación sin precedentes frente a la crisis internacional, de la que ha salido antes y con más pujanza que las economías des…

Volatilidad y alza de precios de productos básicos desafían a economías de América Latina

(21 de mayo, 2011) La nueva escalada de precios registrada en los últimos meses por los productos básicos, especialmente agrícolas, minerales y energéticos, genera incertidumbre y representa un obstáculo a la inversión y acumulación sostenida de capacidades tecnológicas y productivas en los países de América Latina y el Caribe, alertó la Secretaria Ejecutiva de la CEPAL, Alicia Bárcena, durante una visita de dos días a Buenos Aires, Argentina, que culminó anoche. Bárcena fue la oradora principal en el segundo día del Taller de trabajo G-20 sobre commodities (productos básicos) en l…

Presidente de Panamá Ricardo Martinelli dictará conferencia magistral

(29 de septiembre, 2011) El lunes 3 de octubre el Presidente de Panamá, Ricardo Martinelli, dictará una conferencia magistral en la sede de la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe (CEPAL) en Santiago, con ocasión de su visita oficial a Chile. La actividad, organizada por la CEPAL y la Embajada de Panamá en Chile, será inaugurada a las 15:30 horas por Alicia Bárcena, Secretaria Ejecutiva de esta comisión regional de las Naciones Unidas. La conferencia magistral se titula "Panamá como modelo de crecimiento económico en la región latinoamericana y el reto de disminuir la pobreza". M…

Presidente de Colombia Juan Manuel Santos dictará conferencia en la CEPAL

(12 de agosto, 2011) En el marco de su visita de Estado a Chile, el Presidente de Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos, ofrecerá una conferencia magistral en la sede de la CEPAL en Santiago, actividad organizada por el Ministerio de Relaciones Exteriores de Chile y la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe de las Naciones Unidas. La conferencia se realizará el miércoles 17 de agosto a las 9:00 horas y a ésta asistirán autoridades de gobierno, académicos, representantes de organismos internacionales y miembros del cuerpo diplomático acreditado en Chile. El mandatario colombiano será recibid…

Vicepresidente de la República Popular China dictará conferencia en la CEPAL

(01 de junio, 2011) En el marco de su visita oficial a Chile, el Vicepresidente de la República Popular China, Xi Jinping, ofrecerá una conferencia magistral sobre las relaciones sinolatinoamericanas en la sede de la CEPAL, en Santiago. La conferencia se realizará el viernes 10 de junio a las 10:30 horas y a ésta asistirán autoridades de gobierno, académicos, representantes de organismos internacionales y miembros del cuerpo diplomático acreditado en Chile. Xi Jinping será recibido por Alicia Bárcena, Secretaria Ejecutiva de la Comisión Económica para América Latina y el Caribe, quien le …

CEPAL llama a profundizar alianza estratégica entre Europa y América Latina y el Caribe

(19 de mayo, 2011) "Creemos que existe una ventana de oportunidad para dinamizar la alianza estratégica entre América Latina y el Caribe y la Unión Europea", declaró la Secretaria Ejecutiva de la CEPAL, Alicia Bárcena, durante una visita a Montevideo, Uruguay. La alta funcionaria de Naciones Unidas realizó una exposición titulada "Oportunidades para profundizar las relaciones entre América Latina y Europa" en la Quinta Sesión Plenaria Ordinaria EuroLat (Asamblea Parlamentaria Euro-Latinoamericana), efectuada en esta ciudad. "Debemos reforzar la cooperación para profundizar la integració…

Progress report on the implementation of the biennial programme of regional and international cooperation activities of the Statistical Conference of the Americas of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, 2009-2011

Latin America and the Caribbean on the Road to Rio+20

Both globally and regionally, the Rio+20 Conference comes at a time that differs radically from that of 1972, when the concept of sustainable development was coined. Globally, the world is confronting multiple crises: economic and financial, food security and climate change. The three are urgently calling for a new development paradigm, one that moves the world towards a "new deal." At the regional level, in 1972 environment was barely on the public agenda and in 1992 the region was stepping out of a "lost decade" of weak growth, high inflation, negative transfers and no political space …

Agricultural incentives, growth and poverty in Latin America and the Caribbean: cross-country evidence for the period 1960-2005. Did trade liberalization increase the incomes of the poorest?

This study focuses on the link between agricultural trade openness and the sector's performance, an improvement in which could have significant impacts on poverty reduction. We emphasize Latin America, during the 1960-2005, using a recently constructed data base of agricultural support Nominal and Relative Rates of Assistance (NRA and RRA) that includes information for several developing countries, beyond the region. The principal question addressed is, does the trade regime influence sectoral growth? With the answer to this question we then make some inferences regarding the influence of…

Annotated provisional agenda. Tenth meeting of the Executive Committee of the Statistical Conference of the Americas of the
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean

Seminario Internacional de UNASUR "De la Integración Política a la Integración Económica y Financiera". Panel: América Latina, la institucionalidad regional y los foros internacionales: la UNASUR, el G-20, el G-24, el G-77, el G-192

The Outlook for Agriculture and Rural Development in the Americas: A Perspective on Latin America and the Caribbean 2011-2012

Just as the world economy was showing signs of a recovery, a new global recession and a financial crisis in Europe are looming on the horizon. The economies of the great majority of countries grew in 2010, albeit at different speeds. While growth in the most developed countries was sluggish and in Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) averaged a little over 4%, the production of the developing economies rose by more than 6.5%, with China and India, the new engines of the world economy, leading the way. Paradoxically, the specter of recession has appeared when the global economy is also showing…

Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC): new biregional trade and investment relations in a changing world economic environment

Developing Asia and Latin America and the Caribbean are becoming the world's new growth poles. Economies in Developing Asia, led by the People's Republic of China, are growing three times as fast as the industrialized countries. Latin America and the Caribbean weathered the international crisis with remarkable resilience and emerged from it sooner and more strongly than the developed economies. In the coming years, the industrialized economies will continue to face complex challenges, in particular the need to control and gradually rein in the fiscal deficit and public debt in a cont…

Forum for East Asia-Latin America Cooperation (FEALAC). New bi-regional trade and investment relations in a changing world economic environment

The dynamics of industrial energy consumption in Latin America and their implications for sustainable development

This article analyses the relationship between energy consumptionin industry and industrial productivity and the implications of this forsustainable development. To this end, it presents a matrix characterizingeconomies as: (i); converging or diverging in terms of energy consumptionper unit of value added, and (ii); catching up with or falling further behindthe productivity level of the international frontier (the United States);. On thebasis of data from the industrial surveys of four Latin American countries(Brazil, Chile, Colombia and Mexico);, it concludes that the region's evidentspe…

The European Investment Bank and SMEs: key lessons for Latin America and the Caribbean

This paper discusses the engagement of the European Investment Bank Group (EIB Group) with the financing and support of SMEs, both within the European Union (EU) as well as EU Candidate Countries and the Balkans. Indeed, lending and providing financial support to SMEs is one of the key core objectives of the EIB Group. The main focus of the paper is to describe and analyse the practises and experiences of the EIB Group in this field, to discuss the key lessons and to make policy recommendations to be considered within the Latin America and Caribbean (LAC) context. The large role played by the …

Policy alternatives and strategies for the Plurinational State of Bolivia following the end of trade preferences

The governments of Latin America and the Caribbean have made trade-building efforts a key part of their development agenda, given the broad consensus on the important role played by trade in development policy. Although trade is known to provide opportunities to increase the income of the poor, opening up these opportunities depends on a range of domestic factors which complement trade policy and are equally important for generating growth and reducing inequality. The Division of International Trade and Integration of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) has appr…

Expert Group Meeting on “Knowledge Management in the Public Sector” and “Knowledge Strategies for Development: Knowledge Networks”

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean is convening a combined Regional Expert Group Meeting on “Knowledge Management in the Public Sector”; and “Knowledge Strategies for Development: Knowledge Networks”, which will be held at its Port of Spain Office from Wednesday 24 to Friday 26 August 2011. The findings of a report recently prepared by the ECLAC Subregional Headquarters for the Caribbean on the topic of Knowledge Management on the Public Sector will be presented at the meeting, and will serve as the basis for the delib…

Are we building competitive and liveable cities?: Guidelines for developing eco-efficient and socially inclusive infrastructure

This guideline jointly published by The UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), and the UN Human Settlements Programme (UN-HABITAT), in partnership with the Urban Design Lab of the Earth Institute, Columbia University, provides practical tools for city planners and decision makers to reform urban planning and infrastructure design according to the principles of eco-efficiency and social inclusiveness. It includes case studies from the Republic of Korea, the Philippines, Japan and Sri Lanka.…