The OECD Latin America Strategy

Mario presented the OECD Strategic Framework for Latin America and the Caribbean. This strategy aims to boost collaboration between the OECD and governments in Latin America and the Caribbean on key policy issues.

The speaker opened by explaining the growing economic and political importance of Latin America in the world: it has a large, young population, an abundance of natural resources, and a high concentration of democracies.

He explained the work of the OECD: the organisation works with governments to provide policymaking expertise and spaces for dialogue with the aim of creating policies that boost the well-being of the population. The OECD Centre for Latin America is one of multiple regional centres that identify local policy needs and match them to tools and frameworks within the OECD. The strategic framework aims to foster dialogues in the region and improve OECD knowledge of specific problems that each country faces.

Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, and Mexico are already OECD members, and Argentina, Brazil, and Peru are currently in the accession process. Panama, Paraguay, and the Dominican Republic have expressed their interest in joining. The accession process is complex, as it requires each country to meet the rigorous standards of each OECD branch and committee. This process is expected to take multiple years and span electoral cycles.

The speaker celebrated the fact that Latin America was so engaged with OECD programmes. Not only are multiple countries in the region joining the organisation, but actors outside the government are taking part in OECD dialogues and helping the OECD learn more about the policy challenges at hand. He gave the example of the private sector in Brazil: representatives of key businesses and chambers of commerce were actively involved in the accession negotiations, making sure that the technical requirements were not overlooked.

Mario expressed his hope that through the OECD Framework, the organisation could continue to foster good policymaking practices in the region to challenge the historic low productivity and salaries in the region.

Canning House would like to extend its gratitude to Mario for sharing his important work at the OECD, and we look forward to working closely in the future.

OECD Framework