Latin America & the Caribbean

Latin America and the Caribbean is a region marked by great social inequalities. Out of a population of approximately 222 million, 10% of the region’s inhabitants receive 48% of all income, while the poorest segment of the population has access to a mere 2% of total earnings.

The problem of AIDS continues to affect the region. The 2008 report on the global AIDS epidemic indicates that the estimated number of new HIV infections in 2007 was 140,000, and thus the number of people living with HIV rose to 1.7 million.

Although the overall macroeconomic situation in the region has improved following six consecutive years of positive economic performance and stability, it is expected that the global economic crisis will affect growth in the region.

In this context, UNDP gives priority to the following activities:

• Developing and implementing national poverty reduction strategies
• Measuring and monitoring poverty and inequality
• Assessing progress towards the Millennium Development Goals
• Promoting knowledge and institutional strengthening

With regard to the issue of HIV/AIDS in the region UNDP:

• Advocates for placing HIV/AIDS at the centre of national planning and budgets
• Helps build national capacity to manage initiatives that include people and institutions not usually involved with public health
• Promotes decentralized responses that support community-level action

To confront the current global economic crisis, UNDP is working with governments in Latin America and the Caribbean to help countries adjust their national planning, continue their track towards long-term development and to protect the most vulnerable, taking into account the particular situation in that country.

Photo: UNDP/Peru

• News

• Related Links

  Regional Centre Panama

  Global Environment Facility
  This website is part of the “América Latina Genera” project, which focuses on gender equity knowledge management in an effort to facilitate the access to information and knowledge on gender issues in the Spanish-speaking Latin American region. It is designed to enhance exchanges and coordination among the stakeholders involved in the pursuit of achieving gender equity within the region.

  Growing Inclusive Markets
  This new initiative, spearheaded by UNDP, incorporates a team of researchers and stakeholders from the worlds of business, academia and the human development community who make a substantial contribution both to business strategies and to human development through the provision of mapping tools and a matrix of strategies derived from a broad base of case studies. This website is a source of reports about research, initiatives, tools and case studies used in developing this platform.