The equity gap: Latin America, the Caribbean and the Social Summit

The World Summit for Social Development, held in Copenhagen, Denmark, from 6 to 12 March 1995, brought together a large number of heads of State and Government and official representatives from States Members of the United Nations and culminated in the adoption of the Copenhagen Declaration on Social Development and the Programme of Action of the World Summit for Social Development. These two documents —the first containing policy statements, the other dealing with their practical application— imply commitments at the national, regional and international levels. Barely two years have passed since this summit was held, too short a period to permit an evaluation of the impact of the actions that the Latin American and Caribbean Governments set out to undertake. On the other hand, most of the countries were already implementing a variety of official policies related to the great objectives of the World Summit for Social Development. Al reunirse ahora los países miembros de la CEPAL para examinar, por vez primera, los avances hacia la aplicación de los resultados de la Cumbre,1 la Secretaría ha centrado su estudio en tres aspectos. Primero, en examinar, desde la óptica latinoamericana y del Caribe, la situación actual en materia de pobreza, empleo e integración social, los principales temas de la Cumbre. Segundo, en el ámbito de las políticas, en reseñar las tendencias que resultan más relevantes para el cumplimiento de los compromisos antes mencionados. Tercero, en proponer algunas orientaciones adicionales sobre el contenido y alcance de las políticas tendientes a facilitar el pleno cumplimiento futuro de dichos compromisos. Se procura con ello orientar el debate de los gobiernos y de la sociedad civil en América Latina y el Caribe acerca de cómo se están instrumentando en la región los compromisos de la Cumbre de Copenhague.

Methodology for the comparison of military expenditures

Includes bibliography

Flexible labour markets, workers' protection and the security of the wings": a Danish flexicurity solution to the unemployment and social problems in globalized economies"

Includes bibliography

The gender perspective in economic and labour policies: state of the art in Latin America and the Caribbean

Includes bibliography

Aníbal Pinto Santa Cruz

Aníbal Pinto Santa Cruz, Director of the Review since 1986, died on 3 January. His death fills us with profound grief and leaves a deep vacuum in this organization. The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean benefited for many years from the intellectual sparkle and human warmth of Mr. Pinto, who served for several years as Director of the Economic Development Division. What is more, he was one of the personalities who gave the ECLAC secretariat a clear institutional identity. The depth and clarity of his analyses of Chile and its development process were matched by his real dedication to Latin America, which inspired him to make solid and valuable contributions to the progress of ideas in our region. He belonged in his own right to the select group of those thinkers whose new categories and concepts afford others a richer vision of reality. It is not surprising, therefore, that followers and former students of his abound in the region. A person of great intellectual generosity, impatient with conventional wisdom and intolerance from all academic and political quarters, Aníbal Pinto received recognition from the international academic community, as embodied in the Raúl Prebisch Ibero­American Prize in Economics, an honorary doctorate from the University of Campinas, Brazil, and the Chilean National Prize in the Humanities and Social Sciences for 1995. In recent months he received two further distinctions: first, a tribute from his ECLAC colleagues on the occasion of the fiftieth anniversary of the United Nations, and second, a collection of his writings published by the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México which was presented to him in a ceremony held at the Santiago Book Fair in December 1995. ECLAC has been immensely fortunate in having among its senior officials great personalities who have left behind a legacy of values, principles and key ideas; institution­builders, if you will. If there is anything which distinguishes ECLAC from other United Nations bodies, it is this. Aníbal Pinto's name will undoubtedly be among those which resound the loudest. For this reason, and for his exceptional human qualities, we shall remember him with affection and admiration.

The interplay of macro- and microeconomics

The statement starts with a balance of the 15-years period of the economic reforms occurred in the region, up to the Mexican financial crisis in 1995. The main lesson to be drawn from this period refers to the need of supplementing and reinforcing macro-economic policy, together with the application of public policy measures at the micro-, meso-, and institutional levels, in order to support productive modernization, the development of financial and labour markets and the establishment or strengthening of institutions which can help to create an environment conducive to development. Further on, the statement explains the strategies proposed by ECLAC for overcoming the obstacles to accelerated growth within a framework of stability, social equity and democracy. These refer to expanding gross domestic product, increasing productivity and providing more and better jobs. In order to achieve this goal it is necessary to ensure macroeconomic equilibria in its broader sense, raise the level of national saving and channel it into productive investment, as well as an accelerated and systematic incorporation of production and management techniques designed to raise productivity in a growing number of firms. In the last part, the statement refers to the situation of the United Nations and honors the memory of Dr. Raúl Prebisch, on the tenth anniversary of his death.

Social stratification under tension in a globalized era

Includes bibliography

Framework for implementation of the outcomes of the World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) in the small island developing states of the Caribbean subregion

Includes bibliography

Assessment of the socioeconomic and environmental impact of hurricane Ivan on Jamaica

Includes bibliography

The potential of Aid for Trade to improve the infrastructure and logistics performance of landlocked developing countries of Latin America

Incluye bibliografía.

The CARIFORUM-EU Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA): an assessment of issues relating to market access, safeguards and implications for regional integration

The recent collapse of the Doha round once again underscores the tenuous nature of international trade negotiations. Likewise, the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) between the CARIFORUM grouping and the European Union (EU) has generated a great deal of discussion and debate over the past several months. What has clearly emerged is the existence of two diametrically opposed views on the impact and usefulness of the agreement. One view has it that the EPA is a major breakthrough in trade relations that will greatly benefit the region. On the other hand, some see it as being detrimental to the region and perhaps a total capitulation to the EU on the part of the CARIFORUM. They assert that it is part of a global EU strategy to impose World Trade Organization (WTO) policies on developing nations and get around the Doha obstacles. Both sides in this debate attempt to back up their views with reference to the text of the agreement. The objective of this review is to shed some light on the issues driving this debate particularly in the areas of market access, the impact on tariff revenues, and the implications for regional integration. This review also attempts to clarify and distill some of the main contentious issues regarding the EPA and to inform further discussion regarding an implementation plan. The approach is based on detailed study of the EPA text and its annexes plus extensive interviews with some of the main negotiators on the CARIFORUM side. Interviews were conducted both in person and via the Internet as many of the regional negotiators live or work outside of the region. The reviewer also attended presentations and discussions with some of the leading regional critics of the agreement.