(4 May 2007) Invited by the Maison de L'Amérique Latine and by the Institut des Hautes Études de L'Amérique Latine, 27 April, in París, the Deputy Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Ernesto Ottone, gave a presentation on social development in Latin America and the contributions of ECLAC, through technical assistance and in the realm of ideas and intellectual debate.
Ernesto Ottone presented a detailed historical overview of social development in the 1990s, highlighting four of its most notable characteristics. Firstly, the crisis stemming from the "lost decade" of development (the 1980s) was reversed. This reversal illustrated that each country has its own path, and the reforms made to previous reforms shattered the notion of a single model for development, giving way to more heterodox approaches. Thirdly, this period revealed the contradictions of social development, where progress in education and health, for example, were not accompanied by similar achievements in the area of poverty and income distribution. Lastly, the 1990s were a highly volatile decade for economic growth, with some periods of high growth during which the poorest sectors were nevertheless unable to recuperate the ground lost during periods of low growth.
Over the past two decades, ECLAC has focused its attention on six main themes, which have direct impacts on well-being: a) poverty, b) income distribution, c) employment, d) labour stratification, e) intergenerational transmission of opportunities for well-being, and f) the magnitude and impacts of social spending. All of these issues affect whether or not people feel a sense of belonging in a society and in the dynamics of development.
The profound changes unleashed by the revolution in communications, the globalization of the economy and their impact on Latin American societies, have put the issue of social cohesion at center stage. No longer simply a question of overcoming the divide between rich and poor, men versus women, young and old, rural and urban communities, First Peoples versus dominant classes, it is now necessary to examine how each of these groups feel they fit in to society, a community of values and a collective future.
Today, this sense of belonging is the main obstacle for some societies intent on pursuing the path towards development. It is an additional problem which cannot be reduced to pre-existing ones. Social cohesion is not only an end in itself, but also an effective means to achieve full citizenship, consolidate democracy, and improve well-being - in short, to advance towards development.
The transition from social development to social cohesion is not only a semantic shift, but a proposal teaming with new content and challenges for all our countries and for ECLAC as an institution fundamentally committed to the region's development.
This conference in Paris also provided the opportunity to promote ECLAC's French-language publications, the fruits of the November 2001 cooperation agreement signed between the French's Ministry of Foreign Affairs and ECLAC. One of these emblematic publications, translated into French and cited during Ernesto Ottone's speech was: "A Decade of Social Development in Latin America and the Caribbean: 1990-1999." Ottone also made reference to the publication "Social Cohesion: Inclusion and a Sense of Belonging in Latin America and the Caribbean."
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