Page 7 - MIN ON
P. 7
A16 LOCAL
Wednesday 5 July 2017
Alicia Bárcena: Focus on Gender, Life Cycle in Public Policy is Crucial
to Guaranteeing the Rights of Women, Children and Adolescents
-ECLAC’s Executive Secretary lescents’ Health in the con-
participated in the high-level text of Latin America and
meeting of the United Na- the Caribbean (2016-2030)
tions initiative “Every Wom- with a view toward achiev-
an Every Child,” inaugurated ing the Sustainable Devel-
by the President of Chile, Mi- opment Goals (SDGs).
chelle Bachelet. During her remarks, Alicia
Bárcena presented key
SANTIAGO, CHILE - “A fo- indicators on the issues
cus on gender and life of poverty, adolescent
cycle in public policy is maternity, infant mortal-
crucial to give visibility to ity, malnutrition, violence
the needs and reverse the against women and school
disadvantages faced by violence, among others,
women, children and ado- that make it possible to
lescents in Latin America identify the main challeng-
and the Caribbean,” Alicia es yet to overcome.
Bárcena, ECLAC’s Execu- “Poverty has the face of a
tive Secretary, said at the Executive Branch. fore “public policies must the highest representative woman in Latin America
first session of the high-level “Gender, age and ethnic- support people throughout of the Economic Commis- and the Caribbean,” she
meeting, Every Woman Ev- ity/race are the three de- the different stages of their sion for Latin America and underscored, since wom-
ery Child, taking place in termining factors in the dis- lives in response to the spe- the Caribbean (ECLAC). en are overrepresented in
the Palacio La Moneda, tribution of well-being and cific risks and vulnerabilities The event was inaugu- the lower income quintiles.
the headquarters of Chile’s Likewise, “children and
power in society,” there- of each person,” explained rated by the President of adolescents are more af-
Chile, Michelle Bachelet, in fected by indigence and
her capacity as co-Chair poverty than persons from
of the high-level advisory other age groups,” she
group for the EWEC (Every added. Bárcena also said
Woman Every Child) initia- that persistent maternal
tive, along with Ministers of mortality for preventable
Finance, Rodrigo Valdés; reasons is probably one of
Health, Carmen Castillo; the most revealing indica-
Education, Adriana Delpi- tors of inequality and dis-
ano; Women and Gender crimination affecting Latin
Equity, Claudia Pascual; American and Caribbean
and Social Development, women.
Marcos Barranza. High UN Furthermore, although in-
officials are attending, as fant mortality has signifi-
well as representatives cantly diminished in the
from the countries of Latin past 10 years, it continues
America and the Carib- to be systematically higher
bean and international among the indigenous and
specialists. Afro-descendent popula-
The EWEC was launched tions, she emphasized.
by former UN Secretary- ECLAC, in conjunction
General, Ban Ki-Moon, with the WFA (World Food
in September 2010, for Programme), have also
the purpose of mobilizing calculated the total costs
and intensifying national of the double burden of
and international action malnutrition (undernutrition
by governments, multi- and obesity) in three Latin
lateral organizations, the American countries (2014).
private sector and civil so- The figures amount to 493
ciety around the principal million dollars in the case of
health challenges faced Chile (0.2% of GNP), 4.344
by women, children and billion dollars in Ecuador
adolescents throughout (4.3% of GNP) and 28.830
the world. billion dollars in Mexico
“Today we have concrete (2.3%), in health, educa-
evidence that actions in tion and productivity costs.
support of women, child- “Inequality is not inevita-
hood and adolescence ble,” summed up Bárcena,
generate tremendously who advocated for a new
positive impacts” on so- development paradigm
ciety, stated the Chilean in Latin America and the
president at the event, Caribbean that combines
whose aim is to discuss social inclusion, environ-
the implementation of the mental sustainability and
Global Strategy for Wom-
en’s, Children’s and Ado- economic dynamism. q
