Academic Forum on Care Begins in Preparation for the XVI Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean

The Academic Forum “Territories of Care: Contributions from Academia to the XVI Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean” will be held in Mexico City, on August 28 and 29, 2024. Convened by the Government of Mexico through the National Institute of Women; El Colegio de México, A.C. (COLMEX); the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC); and UN Women, the event brings together representatives from academia, governments, civil society, and international organizations.

Silvia Giorguli, President of El Colegio de México, where the event is being held, stated: “Academia plays a critical role in building regionalism in Latin America, with a focus on the impact of care on development; the consolidation of care policies from a transformative and sustainable perspective; the advances, synergies, and challenges in the research agenda and its integration with social protection; and the application of an intersectional approach across Latin America and the Caribbean.” She also emphasized academia’s contribution to providing diagnoses and data for the development of care policies and its responsibility in participating in public discussions.

Ana Güezmes, Director of the Division for Gender Affairs at ECLAC, highlighted: “The Buenos Aires Commitment, adopted at the XV Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2022, reaffirms the importance of recognizing care as essential work, a right, and an economic driver. Today, in this Academic Forum, we are paving the way for the XVI Regional Conference on Women to be held in Mexico in 2025, with the firm belief that integrating care at the center of public policies is crucial for transforming our societies and is a pillar for the sustainability of life and the planet. ECLAC reaffirms its commitment to promoting the care society to achieve gender equality and a more productive, inclusive, and sustainable future.”

This Forum, being held for the first time, marks a significant milestone in the preparations for the XVI Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean, which will take place in Mexico in 2025.

For 47 years, the Conference has been setting priorities and addressing relevant issues to generate gender-sensitive public policies in the region, positioning itself as a pioneer in the debates on gender equality, work, and care.

During the opening session, Cecilia Alemany, Deputy Regional Director for the Americas and the Caribbean at UN Women, emphasized the importance of focusing on care and territories: “Revaluing the territory and addressing the proximity of local areas in comprehensive care policies ensures the closeness of care services, improves quality of life, promotes formal employment at the local level, and adds greater value to public services. In this forum, we aim to identify research and innovations in national and subnational care policies, understand how community sense operates, and strengthen infrastructure and the relationship with the environment.”

Meanwhile, Nadine Gasman, President of the National Institute of Women of Mexico, highlighted the significance of the event in the regional context. “This issue is very important for the Government of Mexico and for the Transformation because in this administration we have placed people at the center. This meeting point is crucial for the Regional Gender Agenda, where organizations, governments, United Nations international organizations/agencies, feminist organizations, activists, and academia will gather at the XVI Conference to chart the roadmap for building this care society.”

The Role of Care in the Sustainable Development Goals and the Regional Gender Agenda

During the Forum, discussions will focus on how reorganizing care work and investing in care policies and systems are fundamental to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda. In addition to contributing to SDG 5, which centers on gender equality, comprehensive care policies and systems are key to eradicating poverty, promoting health, education, and decent work, and combating climate change.

The region is home to the Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean, the main regional intergovernmental forum of the United Nations on women’s rights and gender equality.

For 47 years, ECLAC member states have agreed on a deep, progressive, and comprehensive Regional Gender Agenda, positioning the region as the only one in the world with an agenda that guides countries' public policies to achieve gender equality in law and in practice, guarantee rights and women’s autonomy, and lay the foundations for building societies with equality.

The Regional Gender Agenda reaffirms the importance of considering care not only as a growing demand but also as work, a right, and an economic driver.

Forum Debates and Methodology

The Forum is organized into presentations and working sessions addressing key topics such as “The Right to Care,” “Care, Territories, and Environmental Sustainability,” “Decent Work and the Care Economy,” and “Challenges in the Care Research Agenda.” These sessions will allow for an in-depth analysis of each aspect, integrating intersectional and territorial approaches that recognize the diversity of experiences in the region.

This Academic Forum on Care will lay the groundwork for continuous work that will be strengthened in collaboration with civil society, academia, governments, and international organizations in the months leading up to the XVI Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean in 2025.

The discussions and reflections generated in this space will significantly contribute to enriching the regional debate on how to advance towards a care society. This joint effort will ensure that the voices and perspectives of all involved actors are integrated in the search for practical and effective solutions to the region’s challenges, with gender equality and sustainability as central pillars of development.