Alicia Bárcena calls to generate a new narrative on international development cooperation in Latin America and the Caribbean regarding the 2030 Agenda

A call to rethink development and generate a new consensus based on greater regional integration, international cooperation that effectively supports countries in transition to the development of Latin America and the Caribbean, and investments and industrial policies that favor the environmental impulse towards a more sustainable growth for equality, said the Executive Secretary of ECLAC, Alicia Bárcena, during a high-level meeting organized by the European Union (EU) in Panama.

The highest authority of the regional commission of the United Nations was one of the main speakers of the Regional Seminar for Latin America and the Caribbean of the European Union, convened by the General Directorate for International Cooperation and Development of the European Commission (DG DEVCO) and which takes place in Panama City until next Friday, June 15.

Bárcena participated in the panel "Opportunities for cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean in the context of the EU consensus" (Opportunities for cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean in the context of the EU Consensus), together with Stefano Manservisi, General Director of DG DEVCO; Jorge Familiar Calderón, Vice President of the World Bank; and Mario Pezzini, Director of the Development Center of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

In his speech before an audience composed of European Union ambassadors in the region, high-level officials from various EU institutions, and representatives of numerous regional and international organizations, civil society and the private sector, the Executive Secretary of the The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) pointed out that in the face of the profound tectonic changes that currently define globalization - the technological revolution, the future of work in the face of robotization, climate change, geopolitical modifications, the crisis commercialization of mega-agreements, migration and the aging of the population- it is urgent to look for new patterns of production and consumption.

A call to rethink development and generate a new consensus based on greater regional integration, international cooperation that effectively supports countries in transition to the development of Latin America and the Caribbean, and investments and industrial policies that favor the environmental impulse towards a more sustainable growth for equality, said the Executive Secretary of ECLAC, Alicia Bárcena, during a high-level meeting organized by the European Union (EU) in Panama.

The highest authority of the regional commission of the United Nations was one of the main speakers of the Regional Seminar for Latin America and the Caribbean of the European Union, convened by the General Directorate for International Cooperation and Development of the European Commission (DG DEVCO) and which takes place in Panama City until next Friday, June 15.

Bárcena participated in the panel "Opportunities for cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean in the context of the EU consensus" (Opportunities for cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean in the context of the EU Consensus), together with Stefano Manservisi, General Director of DG DEVCO; Jorge Familiar Calderón, Vice President of the World Bank; and Mario Pezzini, Director of the Development Center of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

In his speech before an audience composed of European Union ambassadors in the region, high-level officials from various EU institutions, and representatives of numerous regional and international organizations, civil society and the private sector, the Executive Secretary of the The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) pointed out that in the face of the profound tectonic changes that currently define globalization - the technological revolution, the future of work in the face of robotization, climate change, geopolitical modifications, the crisis commercialization of mega-agreements, migration and the aging of the population- it is urgent to look for new patterns of production and consumption.

"In this scenario, the 2030 Agenda of the United Nations and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) represent a paradigm shift; it is a civilizatory agenda that requires better international and regional governance, "said Bárcena.

In this uncertain international context, international cooperation plays a key role, especially for nations in transition or "middle income", said the international official. Currently, 85% of the countries in the region are included in this category, which classifies them according to their gross domestic product (GDP) per capita, without considering the deep structural gaps that many of them present.

"These countries have been 'graduated', that is, they are no longer eligible to receive official development assistance (ODA), which does not guarantee their access to other funding sources and eliminates their trade preferences. "Bárcena explained. "In the case of small island developing states (SIDS), especially in the Caribbean, the size and isolation of their economies represents a significant restriction on the mobilization of national resources, in addition to their vulnerability to the effects of the climate change and the accumulation of debt, "he said.

Alicia Bárcena reiterated that while Latin America and the Caribbean has managed to significantly reduce inequalities in recent years, it is still the most unequal region in the world. He pointed out that this reduction in inequalities has given way to a transformation in the structure of societies, removing a large number of households from poverty. The figures show that the middle classes are increasing at a rate higher than the average of the OECD countries. However, these middle classes have been more vulnerable to the setbacks in development, which would return them to poverty, he said.

"As we pointed out in our last institutional document, inequality is inefficient because it generates a vicious circle of low productivity and social exclusion," he said. "That is why we advocate for a new style of development that ends with the culture of privilege and is based on a sustainable transformation with a great environmental impulse, in a productive inclusion with greater technology, better institutions that generate trust in citizens and, above all, , with greater equality and universal access to well-being." said Bárcena.

On the role of international cooperation, the Executive Secretary of ECLAC reaffirmed that South-South and triangular cooperation can protect the interests of middle-income countries, strengthen the participation of developing nations in global forums on fiscal cooperation, and address the harmful tax competition between countries through integrated regional programs. "Therefore, the strengthening of less asymmetric forms of cooperation is increasingly necessary," he said.

Bárcena indicated that the recent regional instrument "Transitional Facility for Development" signed by the EU, ECLAC and the OECD, is a tool that opens an unprecedented space to rethink a new type of development and move towards a renewed cooperation, which should be based on six pillars: the strengthening of the regional dialogue; a greater emphasis on cooperation on fiscal policies that allow the mobilization of resources, both domestically and internationally; the investment in industrial and technological policies that favor a great environmental impulse; the improvement of statistical capabilities to make better measurements; a focus on gender equality; and the opening of spaces for dialogue between governments, businesses and citizens, as well as better coordination with the United Nations system, regional entities and development banks.