In Caribbean small island developing States (SIDS), electrical power outages are frequent in the aftermath of major weather events. While local service disruptions often last a few days after these events, nationwide power grid failures lasting several weeks, or months have resulted in enormous social and economic impacts. In 2017, Hurricane Maria left 90 per cent of the population of Dominica without access to electricity for over four months (Commonwealth of Dominica, 2020) and caused a systemwide collapse of Puerto Rico's power grid that took 11 months to be entirely restored (Campbell…
The versatility of electricity, which can be transformed into heat, light or mechanical movement, makes it a very valuable form of energy. It can be used to light a home, cook food or move machinery in productive processes. Access to electricity is thus crucial for human and economic development. In the 1980s and 1990s, Latin America and the Caribbean substantially reformed the electricity sector. During this process, most of the countries in the region privatized all or part of the sector, which historically had been in the hands of the state. Thus, private companies largely took charge of el…
This paper was prepared to guide the first session of the training workshop Introduction to Financial Feasibility Assessment of EE and RE Projects in the Caribbean. It explores two potential reasons that might be hindering the adoption of energy efficiency policies in the Caribbean. The first reason is related to the availability of primary infrastructure. Countries with deficits on their primary infrastructure might not consider energy efficiency policies as a priority for a national discussion. The second reason is debt overhang. In this type of scenario, countries might be dissuaded to cond…
This document synthesizes the most pertinent findings of a survey of over 41 container terminals around the world of which 30 are located in Latin America and the Caribbean and represent 1/3 of the regional annual container throughput in 2014.
The results are part of a global study on energy consumption in terminals and ports of all kinds. Follow ‐ up publications including a larger set of countries as well as with specifications for bulk cargo, liquids and gas are under way. Furthermore, sub ‐ regional and national seminars are envisaged over the course of the year to present the study’s resu…
This study builds on the Corporate governance and development of capital markets in Latin America report published by the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), which looked at the regulatory framework related to the principles of corporate governance in the region and assessed its contribution to the development of capital markets. This book complements the previous study and is the result of a joint effort by CAF, the Inter- American Development Bank (IDB) and ECLAC to identify the key elements of corporate governance …
This paper reviews the current status of the international fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism, highlighting the importance of its prevention for economic and financial stability in Latin America and the Caribbean. It synthesizes the recent history of international legislation and agreements with respect to the issues, and presents the framework of public and private sector actors engaged in combating these threats. It reviews Latin American and Caribbean countries’ compliance with the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) (40 + 9) Recommendations, and analyzes the regio…
Food safety and agricultural health standards have become a mayor challenge for food exports from developing countries in the past few years (Jaffe & Henson, 2005; OECD, 2003; Josling, Roberts & Orden, 2004; Maskus & Wilson, 2001). As tariff rates were negotiated down in the context of the World Trade Organization (WTO) and in regional and bilateral trade agreements, international trade in agro-food products increased substantially and so did concerns over food safety and agricultural health in food importing countries. Several countries, including the U.S, started to pay closer at…
This study is a measure of the impact of the yachting sector in Saint Lucia specific to the
terms of reference as presented by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the
Caribbean (ECLAC). This study is part of the project: Development of a Subregional Marinebased
Tourism Strategy, co-funded by the Government of the Netherlands, which is aimed at the
development of sustainable yachting in the Eastern Caribbean and focuses on the island arc from
the British Virgin Islands in the north to Trinidad and Tobago in the south. This study was
compiled based on information gathered through inter…
The hundredth anniversary of the birth of Raúl Prebisch
is an invaluable opportunity for us to take another look
at the ideas of this great Latin American, one of the
thinkers from the developing world who has had the
strongest influence in world economic debates. His
ideas have been the subject of heavy criticism, but much
of this has been based on distorted versions of his
thinking or of its practical application, rather than his
true intellectual work. Taking his proposals out of their
historical context has also been a frequent practice, even
by some of his own followers. It should be reme…
Introduction Biodiversity, as the name implies, is the term used to describe the differences that exist between and among the various species of organisms on the planet earth. Biodiversity can be measured on a worldwide basis, on a regional basis, on a national basis, as well as on a zonal basis. The interactions of these various species provide the basis for sustaining life, human life in particular. On that basis then, it is of utmost importance that the biodiversity of any area be preserved and this can only be done by a proper understanding of the organisms, their relative positions and in…
26 - 27 Mar
2025, 17:00 - 20:00
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Evento (Meetings and technical symposiums)
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development is an opportunity to galvanize action aimed at promoting greater inclusion of youth in all spheres. This roadmap recognizes in several of its goals the centrality of the full incorporation of youth as a necessary condition to move towards more inclusive societies, in which no one is left behind, on a path to sustainable development. However, youth in the Caribbean face many challenges that need to be addressed as precursors to creating environments that enable them to reach their maximum potential to contribute to the achievement of SDGs by 2030, the…
Dear Executive Secretaries of the sister UN Regional Economic Commissions,
Dear Selwin Hart, UN Assistant Secretary-General for the Climate Action Team (CAT)
Dear Thilmeeza Hussain, Director of the Regional Commissions New York Office,
Distinguished guests, colleagues, and participants,
Welcome to this side-event on how Critical Energy Transition Minerals can accelerate progress towards the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), convened under the auspices of the United Nations Regional Economic Commissions.
Today, we gather to address a defining challenge of our time: powering and enabling the…
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed the world’s fragilities, including the weaknesses of our food systems which exacerbate hunger, obesity, poverty, political instabilities and economic crises. To overcome common and regional challenges, the five UN regional commissions have been working jointly on devising harmonized pathways and proposing game changers that can transform food systems, reverse their current performance and improve their outcomes.
This collaboration resulted in the launch of a joint policy brief entitled Transforming Food Systems for the Food Systems Summit, held on 23 Sept…
Although oil production is just starting in Guyana, the Government of Guyana is well aware that fossil fuels are a finite resource and do not last forever. It therefore continues to take a strategic approach to the development of a sustainable and cleaner energy sector, and the Guyana Energy Agency (GEA) is considering energy efficiency measurements as a tool for strengthening energy security, securing a long-term reduction in greenhouse gas emissions and increasing revenue and cost savings. With the support of the Regional Observatory on Sustainable Energies (ROSE), GEA has built a database o…
The Brazilian energy sector has reached a preeminent point in its history and has the potential to transform the livelihoods of thousands through innovative and fair energy policies. Since electric power distribution is highly centralized and strictly regulated by the State, it is critical to understand what kind of prospects exist for the diffusion of micro and mini solar photovoltaic generation in Brazil. In this study, a scenario analysis is implemented and the process of constructing the two scenarios, baseline and alternative, is described. Later, a model is presented that estimates diffu…
Much analysis and proposals on sustainable transport policies have been developed around the world, both at government and research institutions. It is clear that no action will provide the single solution and it is imperative to act simultaneously on: i) improvement of technology in vehicles, leading to increased energy efficiency; ii) the change in driver behavior, to use less fuel per kilometer; iii) reducing the distances traveled per vehicle; and iv) a change in the type of travels towards more sustainable modes of transport.In general, the recommendations for energy efficiency in transpo…
Guyana, like many CARICOM countries continues to depend on imported oil that fuels the electricity and transport sectors. Simultaneously, the high level of expenditure on oil reduces the financial resources available to invest in social development, environmental protection, adaptation to climate change and improving food security. The electricity sector in Guyana, in particular, offers significant opportunities for achieving reductions in fossil imports. However, fiscal and regulatory barriers to energy efficiency and renewable energy use are apparent in Guyana.
This document seeks to identif…
The study aims at unveiling the potential of smart grids technology deployment in the Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) Regions. Founding on a general discussion of the smart grids functionalities and on the description of the progressive evolution of an electricity system from the present state towards the full deployment of smart grids concept, the study puts the concept into the LAC context through the preliminary analysis of the present situation in six representative countries. Challenges and opportunities for the evolution of the local systems towards smart grids are pointed out, mot…
This report presents the results of a survey of multinational enterprises (MNEs) from Chile, carried out by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the Vale Columbia Center on Sustainable International Investment (VCC), a joint undertaking of Columbia Law School and The Earth Institute at Columbia University in New York. The survey, conducted in 2011, covers the period 2009-2010 and was undertaken in the framework of the Emerging Markets Global Players (EMGP) project, an initiative of the VCC that brings together researchers from leading instituti…
Job creation continues to be a priority in economic policy because the wellbeing of families depends on the quantity and quality of jobs available. In 2004-2008, Latin America recorded its highest economic growth in 40 years, which has had a positive impact on job creation, in contrast to the minimal improvements in both job numbers and quality posted during periods of slow economic growth. Economic growth is not, however, the only factor that shapes these two aspects of employment. The three pillars of the institutional framework for labour, namely, the regulations governing individual and co…