Policy Dialogues for Post-pandemic Recovery

Latin America was one of the regions hit hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic worldwide. The health crisis has, in turn, had a very strong impact on social indicators. In particular, the increase in poverty and inequality pushed back gains made over the past 10 to 15 years on such indicators. Many of these impacts can persist over time. For example, school closures, school dropouts or increased informality affect the long-term path of youth job opportunities by permanently reducing their ability to generate income.

Social protection systems in many countries were not prepared for such a crisis. In general, these systems are linked to formal employment, meaning that more than 270 million workers in Latin America were not covered with adequate unemployment insurance, pensions, medical coverage and protection from other risks that affect their well-being and that of their families. The crisis forced governments to expand existing transfer systems, but reaching those populations that were not covered by administrative records due to their informal or precarious employment status represented a major challenge.

It is therefore necessary to rethink social protection systems for the post-pandemic period to ensure access to basic social services and protection against the multiple risks to which families are exposed. At the same time, these systems must not discourage the accumulation of human capital, the transition to formal employment and must also be financially sustainable. Social protection policies must be combined with urban interventions that improve the living, public space and citizen security conditions, all aspects that are also relevant to the well-being of families in a highly urbanized region.

This seminar will discuss the results and policy recommendations from a series of papers specially developed by CAF experts. At the same time, a dialogue will be initiated with high-level government officials in the region regarding the challenges of designing and implementing these policies.