The President of Argentina, Alberto Fernández, will inaugurate the thirty-ninth session of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) – the most important biennial gathering of this United Nations regional organization – which will be held on October 24-26 in Buenos Aires and where ECLAC will present its proposal for reactivation with transformation of the development model in the region.

Also participating in the opening ceremony, which will take place on Monday, October 24 at 9 a.m. local time in Argentina (GMT-3) at the Centro Cultural Kirchner, will be Santiago Cafiero, Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship of Argentina, the country that will take over as Chair of ECLAC; Arnoldo André Tinoco, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica, in his capacity as the organization’s outgoing Chair; José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, Executive Secretary of ECLAC; Mercedes Marcó del Pont, Secretary for Strategic Affairs of Argentina; Claudia Mojica, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations system in Argentina; and António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, who will deliver a message by video.

The event will bring together representatives from ECLAC’s 46 Member States and 14 associate members, along with researchers, academics, representatives of civil society and international officials.

ECLAC’s sessions offer a forum conducive to analyzing issues relevant to the development of the region’s countries and to examining the progress made on the Commission’s activities. They further allow the governments of Member States to learn about the work carried out by ECLAC in the last year – by examining a report on the Secretariat’s activities – and to define the mandates that will guide the Commission’s future endeavors, through their approval of the programme of work and the calendar of conferences.

Following the opening ceremony, on that same Monday, October 24, the Commission will unveil its position document entitled Towards transformation of the development model in Latin America and the Caribbean: production, inclusion and sustainability, which will be presented by ECLAC’s Executive Secretary, José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs.

The report analyzes, among other issues, the present and future of globalization, the productive heterogeneity specific to the region, and it discusses strategies and policies for inclusive and sustainable growth and development. It also analyzes and proposes policies on nine productive sectors that are key to sustainable growth: the energy transition, electromobility, the circular economy, the bioeconomy, the digital economy, the pharmaceutical industry, tourism, the care economy, and Micro, Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) and the social and solidarity economy. It also presents a set of policy recommendations for tackling the current scenario of low growth, high inflation and increased poverty and inequality.

The document will be commented upon by a high-level panel, moderated by Argentina’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship, Santiago Cafiero, and featuring the participation of the Nobel Prize in Economics recipient, Joseph Stiglitz; the Professor in the Economics of Innovation and Public Value of University College London, Mariana Mazzucato; the Minister of Finance and Public Credit of Colombia, José Antonio Ocampo; and the Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), Rebeca Grynspan.

Furthermore, on Wednesday, October 26, a dialogue will take place between foreign ministers of Latin America and the Caribbean as well as other high-level authorities from the region and prominent political figures from outside the region – including the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Josep Borrell – to reflect on the regional context, the economic recovery and international cooperation in the face of a new multilateralism.

In addition, ECLAC will present its report on the activities carried out in 2021, including those of its subsidiary bodies, and members will define the mandates that will guide its work in the next biennium (2023-2024).

Prior to the inauguration of this three-day event, on Friday, October 21, attendees will celebrate National Day, a preparatory activity ahead of the session, which is dedicated to the host country and which, on this occasion, will address the challenges of territorial justice.

The thirty-ninth session of ECLAC will be transmitted online via various platforms: the website https://live.cepal.org/ and the United Nations regional commission’s accounts on Twitter https://twitter.com/cepal_onu) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/cepal.onu).

The full programme of the meeting, along with general information, is available on the event’s special website: https://periododesesiones.cepal.org/39/en.

More information:

• Thirty-ninth session of ECLAC.
• Full programme of the meeting.
• Registration for journalists.
• Press kit.

What: Thirty-ninth session of ECLAC.

When: Monday, October 24 to Wednesday, October 26, 2022.

Who:

Inauguration, Monday, October 24, 9:00 a.m. local time in Argentina (GMT -3):

• Alberto Fernández, President of Argentina
• Santiago Cafiero, Minister of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship of Argentina
• Arnoldo André Tinoco, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship of Costa Rica
• José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, Executive Secretary of ECLAC
• Mercedes Marcó del Pont, Secretary for Strategic Affairs of Argentina
• Claudia Mojica, Resident Coordinator of the United Nations system in Argentina
• António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations (via video message)

Where: Centro Cultural Kirchner, Buenos Aires, Argentina (Sarmiento 151, C1041 Buenos Aires).

Also via virtual connection on various platforms:

• ECLAC’s website www.cepal.org
• Website https://live.cepal.org/
• Official account on Twitter https://twitter.com/cepal_onu
• Official account on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/cepal.onu