The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), whose headquarters are located in Santiago de Chile, today celebrates 75 years of existence with the commitment to continue working for a more productive, inclusive and sustainable future for the region.
The Economic Commission for Latin America was established by resolution of the United Nations Economic and Social Council on February 25, 1948, and began operating in Santiago that same year. Later, in 1984, the Council decided that it would be renamed the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, being one of the five regional commissions of the United Nations.
In a video messagethe Executive Secretary of ECLAC, the Costa Rican economist José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, points out that “it is appropriate to celebrate because the contribution of the Commission to the thought and practice of economic and social development in the region during these seven and a half decades has been widely recognized in the region and throughout the world.
According to the highest representative of the institution, “over the years, ECLAC has managed to update its thinking to changing realities, setting directions and shedding abundant light on the options and priorities for the progress of our nations.”
The regional commission today launched a special website that reviews its origins, the evolution of its thinking and current institutional priorities. The center-periphery and industrialization model of the 1950s is described; the structural reforms for regional development in the 1960s; development styles of the 1970s; the debt crisis of the 1980s; the productive transformation with equity of the 90’s; the globalization, development and citizenship triad of the 2000s; equality at the center of sustainable development in the 2010s; and the transformation of the development model into a more productive, inclusive and sustainable one, in the 2020s.
“By commemorating these 75 years, we begin a new stage, in which we will carry out a series of activities that will allow us not only to celebrate this anniversary, but also to strengthen capacities to continue working and better serving Latin America and the Caribbean to build a brighter future. productive, inclusive and sustainable”, stated José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, who took office on October 3, 2022.
The website offers a photographic selection of illustrious visitors, staff and the ECLAC building -considered a landmark of modern Latin American architecture-, as well as other information resources on this United Nations regional commission.
ECLAC was founded to contribute to the economic development of Latin America, coordinate actions aimed at its promotion and strengthen the economic relations of the countries among themselves and with the other nations of the world. Subsequently, its work was extended to the Caribbean countries.
In addition to its main headquarters in Santiago, ECLAC has two subregional headquarters, one for the Central American subregion, located in Mexico City, and the other for the Caribbean subregion, in Port of Spain, which were established in June 1951. and in December 1966, respectively. In addition, it has national offices in Buenos Aires, Brasilia, Montevideo, and Bogotá, and a liaison office in Washington, DC.
The 33 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean are members of ECLAC, along with some nations from North America, Europe and Asia that maintain historical, economic and cultural ties with the region. In total, there are 46 member states, and 14 associate members, a legal status agreed for some non-independent territories of the Caribbean.
