Operational aspects of support programmes for the digital transformation of exporting small and medium-sized enterprises in the Republic of Korea

Because international trade is essential for the Republic of Korea’s economic growth and development, the government actively promotes exports by large companies and especially by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Several programmes support participation by SMEs in cross-border e-commerce, which may have contributed to their rapidly rising exports through this channel. This report reviews selected programmes implemented by the Korea SMEs and Startups Agency (KOSME) and the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA). To maximize the programmes’ impact, KOSME and KOTRA apply a circ…

Information and communication technologies in the health sector: opportunities and challenges for the reduction of inequalities in Latin America and the Caribbean

This document starts by identifying and describing the several benefits expected as a result of incorporating ICTs in health and goes on to summarize present and future challenges for health policies, especially inasmuch as the most vulnerable populations are concerned. Thirdly, the document showcases global progress made in several applications, strategies implemented and difficulties faced in some developed and LAC countries. The document finishes with generic proposals for the formulation of policies and strategies to be considered and adapted by countries throughout the region.…

Tourism in Central America and the Dominican Republic in the face of digital technologies: Challenges and opportunities for MSMEs

Tourism micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) recognize the importance of digital tools to attract tourists, showcase the company and sell products and services. However, they make basic use of these tools to communicate and promote the company, missing opportunities to improve their competitiveness, productivity and sustainability. This study analyses the state of the digital transformation of tourism MSMEs in the member States of the Central American Integration System (SICA), both their internal capacities and external conditions that affect their ability to innovate. The study …

Information and communications technologies for the inclusion and empowerment of persons with disabilities in Latin America and the Caribbean

This paper examines the ways in which Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) can promote greater inclusion of persons with disabilities. It characterizes the patterns of ICT use among persons with disabilities in Latin America and the Caribbean and proposes recommendations and strategies to expand access to and use of ICT among persons with disabilities in the region to harness the potential of these tools to promote greater inclusion. This investigation is based on mixed methods that include the analysis of census data, complemented by interviews, bibliographic review and online se…

Digital review 2007 of Latin America and the Caribbean: progress and challenges policies for development with ICT. Abridged document

SummaryThis document is an abridged version of the Latin America and the Caribbean Digital Review 2007 report which provides an inventory of the national policies and strategies that aim to guide the different countries of Latin America and the Caribbean towards Information Societies. It aims to contribute the understanding of the situations faced by these countries as this process matures. The report is the result of a collective effort by UNDP, ECLAC, DIRSI and ICA-IDRC. It describes the progress achieved and challenges remaining for policy development in 21 countries of the re…

IT enabled services in the post-pandemic economy new opportunities for relations between India and Latin America

During the last few decades, India’s trade with the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) countries has grown substantially, especially in the area of Information Technology (IT) services. The definition of IT services now includes a plethora of IT-enabled services (ITeS) directed to specific sectors, including Agri-tech, Fin-tech, Health-tech, manufacturing and mining-based services, as well as e-commerce. This sector has attracted significant Indian investment in the region. Over the last decade, the share of the IT sector in total Indian Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the region has nearly…

E-commerce environment and trade promotion for Latin America: policy implications from East Asian and advanced economies' experiences

In the late of 1990s, when use of the Internet began to spread to almost all of the activities undertaken by people and businesses around the world, Internet-based electronic commerce was expected to introduce revolutionary innovations in businesses, management and international trade. In particular, information-sharing with clients and the clients of clients, and coordination of business activities with trade partners based on shared information, or the so-called supply chain management (SCM), were expected to be introduced by firms in order to dramatically reduce business costs and establish…

Toward a conceptual framework and public policy agenda for the information society in Latin America and the Caribbean

The advent of modern Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and the establishment of a global Information Society are forcing countries of all shapes and sizes to take a fresh look on their development agendas. In order to tackle the challenging task of integrating the Information Society paradigm appropriately in to the development agenda, this paper proposes a conceptual framework to discuss and analyze the complex issues and challenges related to subject. Basing on an extensive study about the actual situation of the emerging Information Society in Latin America and the Cari…

E-commerce and export promotion policies for small- and medium-sized enterprises: East Asian and Latin American experiences

Abstract As in other parts of the world, small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Latin America are important generators of employment while contributing to establishing certain social as well as regional 'equilibria' in the development process within the country. However, SMEs in Latin America are much less 'export-oriented'than their East Asian counterparts. SMEs in Latin America tend to produce import substitutes and non tradables while manufactured exports are still produced by large firms in relativelycapital-intensive ways. In contrast, many East Asian SMEs are…

Computer applications in the Transport and Communications Division of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean

Presenta la experiencia de la Division de Transportes y Comunicaciones en el uso de computadores para aplicaciones substantivas. Examina los sistemas aplicados - codigo de puertos, ISIS, TRANDIS, COMPA -; el uso de procesamiento de textos en la preparacion de documentos de investigacion e informes y en la correspondencia, y entrega algunas consideraciones con respecto al uso de los microcomputadores.…

Prospects for blockchain-based settlement frameworks as a resolution to the threat of de-risking to Caribbean financial systems

Caribbean countries have been seriously impacted by the trend toward “de-risking” in the global financial system, and this is damaging to their economic security and the ability of Caribbean businesses to innovate. De-risking is the name given to the tendency of banking institutions to turn away from working relationships and lines of business for which the cost of regulatory compliance—and the risk of non-compliance— is deemed to be too high in comparison to the returns. This is a phenomenon that is affecting developing economies around the world, but the small and vulnerable economies of the…

Working paper on the eLAC 2018 Digital Agenda in consideration of Caribbean priorities for technology-supported development

eLAC 2018 will coordinate the implementation of programmes to support the use of information and communications technologies (ICTs) in achieving social and economic development goals for Latin America in the Caribbean during the 2015-2018 timeframe. The conceptual framework for this programme of work is described by the eLAC 2018 Digital Agenda, which is anticipated to be ratified by the fifth Ministerial Conference on the Information Society in Latin America and the Caribbean, to be held in August 2015 in Mexico City. There is a need for broader input from Caribbean countries to the eLAC 2018…

Application of information and communication technologies for health systems in Belgium, Denmark, Spain, the United Kingdom and Sweden

This document describes and analyzes implementation of eHealth in several European countries, as well as strengths and weaknesses, using this experience in order to support the management and execution of this kind of projects in other scenarios. Five EU member States evidencing different degrees of advancement in their national eHealth projects have been selected for this purpose: Belgium, Denmark, Spain, the United Kingdom and Sweden. In addition to these five cases, a brief study has been made of several international collaboration projects for the implementation of cross-border spaces for…

Se destaca la Alianza Regional para la Digitalización de las Mujeres de América Latina y el Caribe en evento en el marco del Sexto Foro Multiactor sobre Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación para los ODS

La Ministra de la Mujer y la Equidad de Género de Chile, Mónica Zalaquett, en su calidad de Presidenta de la Mesa Directiva de la Conferencia Regional sobre la Mujer de América Latina y el Caribe presentó la Alianza Regional para la Digitalización de las Mujeres de América Latina y el Caribe en el evento paralelo Igualdad de Género en la Ciencia, la Tecnología y la Innovación: Hacia un Ecosistema de CTI Inclusivo y Conectividad para Todos y Todas. Este evento se llevó a cabo el 5 de mayo de 2021 en el marco del Sexto Foro Multiactor sobre Ciencia, Tecnología e Innovación para los Objetivos de …

Information and communication technology (ICT) for development of small and medium-sized exporters in Latin America: Brazil

Policy Brief: Moving towards equal access to technology for persons with disabilities in the Caribbean

In the Caribbean, there are approximately 1.3 million persons with a disability of some kind and some 250,000 persons with a significant disability. These numbers are projected to increase dramatically in the coming decades as the population of the subregion ages and given the global increase in chronic health conditions. Persons with disabilities (PWDs) face a range of physical, social, attitudinal and institutional barriers that prevent their full and effective participation in society on an equal basis with others. As a result, they experience less favorable outcomes in health, education, …

Information technology for development of small and medium-sized exporters in Latin America and East Asia

This report is the product of a research project titled Comparative Study on East Asian and Latin American Information Technology (IT) Industries , carried out in 2004 and 2005 by the International Trade and Integration Division of the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in Santiago, Chile, in collaboration with the Institute of Developing Economies Japan External Trade Organization (IDE/JETRO) in Chiba, Japan. The project it was financed by the Thematic Trust Fund - Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for Development, United Nations D…

Science, technology and innovation for sustainable development: Lessons from the Caribbean’s energy transition

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…

Digital infrastructure for the internationalization of small and medium-sized enterprises in the Republic of Korea

Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) account for a significant share of the exports of the Republic of Korea, in large part thanks to the sophisticated digital support infrastructure available to these firms. This document analyses how the government implemented this infrastructure over the last decades in close coordination with the private sector. It also presents the prominent institutions and their digital SME export support instruments. Lastly, it identifies some future challenges and recommendations for Latin America and the Caribbean.…

Information and communication technologies for agricultural development in Latin America: trends, barriers and policies

The present publication has been prepared to study the potential of ICTs to promote socially inclusive and environmentally sustainable agricultural development. In Latin America, social inclusion and environmental sustainability in agriculture are especially relevant issues, in light of the great structural heterogeneity within the sector and, more recently, the stepped-up pressures on natural resources resulting from the boom in international commodity markets. Yet, the adoption of ICTs in agriculture cannot be expected by itself to reduce production asymmetries and enhance social inclusion. …