Social Cohesion in the EU-Latin America/Caribbean strategic partnership

Why is social cohesion at the heart of EU-ALC relations?

It is widely thought that Latin America and the Caribbean have little chance of achieving sustainable growth without tackling the causes of the social exclusion that affects large numbers of people in those countries.

It is true that many LAC countries have made significant progress towards the Millennium Development Goals , such as universal access to primary education. However, the poverty that affects more than a third of the population is reflected in the poor figures for infant mortality, access to drinking water and vulnerability to infectious diseases.

It is universally acknowledged that the region is the least egalitarian on the planet. Glaring inequalities are found throughout Latin America and the Caribbean, in terms not just of revenue but also of land, education and access to credit.

It is not just a matter of inequalities between individuals; there is a marked geographical aspect to inequality in these countries. Within individual countries, different regions are developing at different paces. Only some regions have adequate infrastructure, access to markets and qualified labour that is capable of taking advantage of world markets and reaping the benefits of globalisation.

These inequalities reinforce the exclusion of certain groups, already discriminated against on grounds of gender, age, ethnic origin, social status, race, disability, disease or some other characteristic. These people badly need better political representation at national, regional and local level to break out of the vicious circle of economic, social and political exclusion.

These sources illustrate how wide a consensus there is on the need for action to promote social cohesion in Latin America and the Caribbean:

The European Union is also finding it increasingly hard to maintain its level of social cohesion. A substantial proportion of EU citizens have incomes that are less than 60% of the national median income. There are persistent inequalities in income and in the regional distribution of employment. The number of ways into poverty are growing rapidly.

In response to these problems, the EU’s Heads of State and Government formulated a global strategy against social exclusion and poverty at the European Council meeting in Lisbon in March 2000. The strategy highlights objectives such as:

The European Commission’s website has a page on social cohesion in Europe and the Lisbon strategy

Since the 1970s EU regional policy has also attempted to increase the level of economic and social cohesion between different regions in the Member States.

Site on regional policy

The EU’s past experiences in promoting social cohesion provide an instructive example for cooperation with the Latin American and Caribbean countries and can help them to develop their own ways of tackling inequalities, exclusion and poverty.

The EU has to offer: