Download what kind of development should be financed?

Working for the Conference on Financing for Development
WHAT KIND OF DEVELOPMENT SHOULD BE FINANCED?
By Cecilia López
October 15, 2001
In Preparation for the
2002 United Nations Conference on Financing for Development ( FfD)

The views expressed in this paper are those of the author in collaboration with Rosalba Todaro, Alma
Espino and Magdalena Leon.
The Feminist Initiative of Cartagena is formed by the following networks and groups: REPEM, DAWN,
International Gender and Trade Network, DES Programe of UNIFEM for the Andean Region, CLADEM,
Red Mujer y Habitat, Group of Economist Feminists, Women Transforming the Economy, MARCOSUR,
Coalition , Campaign Women ´s eyes on the Multilaterals, MILENIO Feminista
For more information , please refer to REPEM: [email protected]
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WHAT KIND OF DEVELOPMENT SHOULD BE FINANCED?
Cecilia Lopez Montaño
with the contribution of
Alma Espino and
Rosalba Todaro
New York, October 16th, 2001
I.
INTRODUCTION
This document was written as a reaction to the absence of gender perspective in
the Financing for Development Conference debates and preparatory documents.
It gathers the opinions of a group of Latin-American women convened in
Cartagena de Indias in July of 2001 by the “Red de Educación de Mujeres”,
REPEM and DAWN. During those meetings, the decision of bringing to the
debate a critical view of the actual development model was undertaken by
consensus because without this perspective, the flow of financial resources will
not guarantee a sustainable growth or a true gender or social equality.
One characteristic of today’s world is the polarization between the have’s and the
have not’s as recognized by the Zedillo Report, the preparatory document for the
Financing for Development Conference (Zedillo, Ernesto, 2001). Far from solving
this contradiction, the actual development trends have accentuated this tendency
to the point of turning it into a major concern for countries and institutions. Issues
such as equity and distribution have been maintained exclusively as part of
women’s agendas and their development proposals. The feminization of poverty
and the transfer of cost from production to reproduction caused by the structural
adjustment, clearly imply injustice and increases economic inefficiency.
Although equity and redistribution are subjects that vanished from the economic
literature for the past two decades, today, they are at the center of the
development discourse (Kanbur and Lustig, 1999). Undoubtedly, this may be the
first step to make the unjust and inexplicable differences among sectors of
society become the center of the economic and social policy.
The dynamics of globalization demand a permanent rethinking of the world
events, their priority and of the correct approach to toward them. The recent and
devastating attacks to the Financial and Military heart of the United States and
the reaction, an armed conflict of incalculable repercussions, denote significant
changes in the world’s panorama, in the priorities and the possibilities of
development.
The need to successfully undertake the reduction of inequality is presented on
the Zedillo report as a moral and humanitarian challenge due to the dangers now
faced by the peoples of the rich countries. "In the global world, someone’s
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poverty quickly become someone else’s problem: lack of market for their
products, illegal immigration, contamination, contagious illnesses, insecurity and
terrorism" (Zedillo, Ernesto, 2001). The association between poverty and
terrorism is not evident. What is clear is that hatred is terrorism's engine
nourished by an impoverished and unsatisfied world.
Solidarity, so scarce between rich and poor, should rise swiftly and with force to
prompt policies of redistribution. It should not only be a response to an ethical
commitment, but what it is at stake is the survival of humanity. Priorities have
shifted allowing the possibility of bringing to the front line social justice issues as
part of the main objectives of development. Let solidarity replace retaliation, is
today’s wish for most of the world as it is an agreement for a new international
order.
Under this new premise, financing for development issue must be part of the
ongoing discussion of the economic model. What strategy must be financed? If
today's model is increasing inequity and dissatisfaction to the point of high levels
of hatred as seen during the above mentioned events, is it justified to find new
financial resources to intensify this reality?
The Financing for Development Conference must begin with the debate on the
kind of development that is needed today. This one subject does not appear at
all, implicitly or not, on the preparatory documents. On the contrary, the
documents assume that the guidelines will be applied as they have always been.
There is not any type of questioning of the public policy scheme used during the
past years and, which results have not responded to the expectations that
justified its dissemination throughout the developing world.
From the Latin-Americang women's perspective three key issues are being
brought forward: first, a discussion on today's model and the frustrations that it
has generated in Latin America; second, the need to redesign it illustrating the
basis for a new sustainable development paradigm and; third, an analysis of
these strategies from a gender and social equity perspective. Based on those
three points, and with critical statements this document will intend to influence
the debate at the Financing for Development Conference.
II.
WEAKNESSES OF THE ACTUAL MODEL
ECLAC has just reduced to less than 1% this year’s projection of the Latin
American rate of growth. Figure that is very low compared to last year’s, 4%.
The large economies of the region have drastically lowered their growth rate and
even the Dominican Republic, the most dynamic economy in the Region, will
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slow down during the year 2001. Unemployment continues to be high (8.5%)
despite the reduction on the labour market’s participation rate, presenting cases
such as the Colombian where the unemployment rate has reached 20%, the
highest in Latin America (ECLAC 2001). Similarly, the global context is each day
even less favourable. The slowdown in the American economy and the difficult
situation of Japan, darken tremendously the global panorama and therefore, the
Latin American one. The recuperation of the region, already beaten by the
previous decades, is hopeless.
The Interamerican Development Bank (BID) Assembly held in Chile in March of
2001, exposed even more so the significant frustrations of the 90s where the
famous Washington Consensus was applied with dedication (Iglesias, Enrique,
2001). Without denying the achievements in terms of macro-economic stability
and of the monetary authorities’ increased international credibility, the truth is that
neither in terms of growth nor in social results, the expected results were
accomplished. Furthermore, the accumulation of frustration by societies that
have been waiting for the Latin American miracle, is generating serious political
problems that compromise the governability of the region. For some researchers,
the 90s may be also considered as a lost decade.
During the 90s, Latin America undertook the per capita growth road but to a
much lesser degree than the necessary to reduce poverty (6% or 7%) and even
lower to the one registered in the region between 1945 and 1980 (5.5%
annually). The growth of the 90’s decade was achieved through the stability in
the principal macroeconomic indices, low inflation, and reduced fiscal deficit.
The opening of these economies was consolidated through the advancement of
exports which grew at an average 8.9% per annum, but this growth was
achieved principally in Mexico. The worldwide participation of the Latin-American
exports continues to be insignificant and slightly superior to 5% of the total. A
significant volume of Foreign Investment was attracted to the region but this
advance did not completely translate into an increase in productivity; nearly 40%
of the investments were fusions or acquisitions of existing assets (CEPAL, 2000)
(López, Cecilia, 2000a).
The achievements are even smaller in the social area: poverty was reduced with
respect to the levels seen during the 80s, from 41% to 36%; but at the end of the
lost decade the number of poor people reached 211 million. The social
expenditure with respect to GDP rose to more than 12% although there were no
advances in the reduction of inequity to more acceptable levels(CEPAL, 2000 y
2001).
Additionally, the setbacks are many. Throughout the 90s, investment in Latin
America did not reach the levels of the 70s when it was already considered
insufficient. Furthermore, the Foreign Investment that the region was able to
attract did not generate the expected new assets nor the well announced
technological revolution. Even worst, in several Latin-American countries foreign
4
investors took advantage of the internal
disproportionate gains (López, Cecilia, 2000b).
disorganization
to
accrue
But it is on the foreign sector where foul surprises are found. Exports did grow
but mostly in Mexico and when directed to the United States with items such as
the first and second generation maquilas. There was poor or none at all
diversification of markets and products. By the same token, imports rose even
more than exports generating a dangerous unbalance among the external
accounts and putting the region in trade deficit levels similar to those of the 70s,
but with growth two points lower. (CEPAL, 2000).
What has happened with productivity is extremely serious. Supposedly, the
exposure to the international markets generates a challenge for the national
industry, which consequently forces a growth in the competitiveness levels of
such industry. During the last decade, the medium labor productivity was inferior
to the one registered between 1950 and 1980 and the factor’s total productivity
grew only 1.3% per annum when compare to 2.1% in the three decades prior to
the 80s crisis (CEPAL, 2000).
Nevertheless and probably the most serious factor was that the non-transable
sectors were the ones that grew when the most promising expectations for
growth were on the transables, which completely lost their importance. To make
matters worst, a process of productive concentration derived in making the
transnational corporations and the large industries the biggest winners while the
small and medium size enterprises became the big losers (CEPAL, 2000).
In addition, due to the exploitation of natural resources, the economic model is
contaminating and unsustainable, particularly in South America. In this sub
region, the Washington Consensus did not produce the necessary
transformation needed to change the growth pattern and to therefore guarantee
intergenerational equity. The future of the next South American generation is
compromised by the way in which natural resources are being exploited (CEPAL,
2000).
In regards to the social results, the largest problems are related to equity, a main
issue in the region, and to the behavior of the labor market where the only
valuable asset was the massive entrance of women into this force even with its
persistent patterns of discrimination and occupational segregation. Not only the
income distribution was not improved in the group of Latin American countries
but today some of them are in a more precarious position than three decades
ago (López, Cecilia, 2000a).
With respect to the labor market, the open unemployment grows three
percentage points during the decade, maintaining and furthermore increasing
women’s unemployment rate with respect to the male’s one. On the other hand,
according to ILO, for every 10 new jobs six are generated within the informal
5
sector. At the same time, the gap among qualified workers and not qualified ones
widened significantly in terms of remuneration. But probably, the gravest thing
and maybe the least analyzed issue is the fact that during the last decade, Latin
America lost its opportunity of what is known as the Demographic Bonus. That is,
the largest growth of its labor offer with respect to its population’s total growth.
This phenomena also occurred in the South Asian Region and it is associated to
its large economic growth rates up to their crisis. In Latin America it is consistent
with weak economies and because of it, the largest relative offer of population in
working age translated into unemployment instead of in growth and equity
(CEPAL, 2000).
A good way to describe the social frustrations of the Region, in the dawn of the
new century, is recognizing the fact that only half of Latin-American youth feel
they are better of that their parents. (Lora, Eduardo, 2000). Most definitely, the
results of the Washington Consensus do not justify to further continuing with the
same economic and social strategies.
III.
ON THE WAY TO A NEW SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT PARADIGM
The very own preparatory documents of the Conference and the ensuing
opinions of the people responsible for the Bretton Woods and OMC institutions,
show signs of opening even it is only due to the need to advance the foreign
trade negotiations or to avoid risks of loosing governance. Through them, they
acknowledge that the orthodoxy of the Washington Consensus has not been as
successful as they hoped and that changes are needed now. This opens a new
space for debate. In one hand we have those who propose some changes to the
actual structure, a “Gatopardista” posture that changes a little so nothing will be
changed, and those who believe that a space to explore new alternatives is now
open and should be used.
Through some compensatory measures, the first alternative centers its efforts in
tallying the actual strategies to impose macroeconomic stability as the
fundamental axis of development (Birdsall, Nancy y de la Torre, Augusto, 2000).
But the recent deterioration that has lowered the growth expectance for the
region, re-estimate the search for a new paradigm that removes the regime of the
single model. This is precisely the forgotten issue in the Financing for
Development Conference’s preparatory documents.
The interrelation between the macroeconomic management and the population’s
standard of leaving are clearer each day. The social cost of several decades of
adjustment has evidenced the lack of neutrality, in terms of equity, of the
economic variables. And it is by entering this space that gender equity becomes
a priority as it is impossible to have a fair society when such inequality exists
among 50% of the population, women, and the other 50% of it, men. It is
6
necessary to recognize that theses costs are not the same for both men and
women. The latter have not only been affected as members of their households
but also as a result of the gender division of labor.
There is an over representation of women among the poor of the world. In the
frame of questioning and reformulating development model, this must be
especially considered when designing new equity policies but particularly when
doing so with gender equity. It is necessary to take into account poverty and its
economic implication such as lack of power and voice among that group.
Given the persistent imbalance that generate the functioning of the markets, how
can the economic reconvention process assures the possibility of selling those
products and services that the international markets want to buy? Precisely, the
liberalization of the markets has been functional for the large economies. As it
was once said, in Latin America, the opening of the economies was inwards and
brought with it an unmeasured growth of imports from industrialized countries,
especially from the United States. Even for those who insist on a modified
Washington Consensus, the reduction of protectionism from rich countries is an
absolute priority. They propose to eliminate the agricultural support policies in
OECD countries in order to move the production of their inefficient products to
lower cost developing countries. By the same token, they propose to give more
attention to the results generated by the protection of the rich countries’ markets
on the poor ones (Birsdall, Nancy y de la Torre, Augusto, 2000).
Besides, how new production schemes are able to leave back the single
unsustainable exploitation of their natural resources, the excluding rents and
generate enough employment to take advantage of the demographic bonus that
is occurring today in the Region? (BID. 2000). Additionally and, probably most
important, what is supposed to be done, in order to stop being the most unequal
region of the planet and to lay the foundations so that democracy becomes a
reality? How does one make sure that equality of gender and the elimination of
all the forms of discrimination against women are finally assumed as a highpriority objective?
3. 1. Gender and Development
The economic contribution of women is becoming more and more visible.
Therefore, one of the great advances is the generalized recognition of gender
equality as a development problem, as an objective in itself. The massive
differences of gender have unavoidable economic and social consequences. It is
recognized that greater levels of equality contribute to accelerate economic
growth, to the reduction of the poverty and to a greater capacity to govern
efficiently. "Promoting the fairness or even better gender equality, is therefore an
important element of a development strategy and propose to obtain that
7
everybody - women and men- can escape poverty and improve their life
standard." (World Bank, 2001).
Source:
Graph 1 A value of 1 indicates low equity, 4 indicates high equity.
Humana 1992, quoted on: World Bank, Engendering Development, 2001
Despite these advances, the discrimination by gender is a reality in many
dimensions of life, all over the world. This discrimination varies between
countries and regions and in the developing countries do not exist a place, where
women are equal to men in terms of legal, economic and social rights (World
Bank, 2001). Even in industrialized societies there are clear differences, related
to access that men and women have to the productive resources, to power,
opportunities and political life. There is no a single country in the world where
these unexplainable and unfair breaches between men and women have been
eliminated in all fields of the important activities. In the economic field, women
are the majority only in those part time jobs, with low or no salary. Just 5% of the
high executives and 11% of the parliamentarians of the world, are women
(Picciotto, Robert, 1998). Including the more developed countries the handling of
political power continues being eminently masculine.
Only until recently, it has being recognized that gender is an analytical category
essential to understand unfairness in fields that were considered neutral like
macroeconomics and, therefore, in the nature and dynamics of the
transformation of the economies and the societies. An international consensus
emerges around the convenience of obtaining the eradication of poverty and the
promotion of gender equality (Cagatay, Nilufer, 1998).
A recent World Bank paper states that norms, values, rules and practices that
determine the form in which a woman should be treated within the home and by
the diverse institutions in the society have not changed, in spite of the economic
progress and more than 40 years in which women had been object of
development programs (Narayan, Deepa and Shah, Talat, 2000). To obtain
gender equality is then a pending task that can find new channels in a less
economic but more comprehensive development conception.
8
When today it is recognized that " a new global strategy must be implemented,
with greater resources, a greater focalization and a more hard commitment "
(UNDP, 2000) the opportunity appears to open the view to consider the gender
like a fundamental variable. Reasons for it there are many. Men and women are
located in a differential way in the labor market, have different coverage in the
social security systems and their status and power within the family is different.
Even more, the subject of macroeconomics and gender, that seemed
unapproachable, have entry into force as a result of the series of macroeconomic
adjustments that the diverse countries have had to approach to fulfill the goals of
stability in the economies, imposed by the international institutions.
Two key elements stand out. First, the adjustments strategies do not affect in an
equal way men and women and second, key macroeconomic variables as
saving, consumption and probably investment have different behaviors according
to gender. Given the negative impacts that on the levels of poverty have
generally the application of the Washington Consensus, this effect and the
differential cost of the policies among men and women have acquired great
relevance. But the economic reality of women is not only marked by this different
intensity from the measures effects. Of ampler way, it is characterized by a
dynamics that chains the macroeconomic operation to a domestic order that
demands them to work for free and to take the surviving responsibility of the
family and that has systematically projected them like not economic beings or like
economic agents of second class.
Thus, disregarding economic value of the reproductive work of women at home,
the positive effects of the policies implemented in the world and particularly in
Latin America have been overestimated, in the last decades. Women have
duplicated their services load in the society replacing a State that was reduced
and therefore it has been assumed as more efficient (Cagatay, Nilufer, 1998).
Also, evidence exists on the form in which women fundamentally orient their
consumption towards the essential expenses of the family, while the men
dedicate more to their hobbies, alcohol, tobacco, etc. (DNP, 1998). With smaller
statistical sustenance it can be assumed a different propensity to save and
diverse forms of investment. Without a doubt the survival of the family has been
always much more high-priority for women than for men, specially in developing
societies.
In addition to previous arguments, one thesis is beginning to gain ground: the
macroeconomic policy is not neutral in social terms, and on the urgent necessity
to examine ex-ante the social effects of those policies. One ties this way the
economy, equity and gender. This interrelation must become fundamental stone
of the new development paradigm. Once these links are recognized it would be
inexcusable that specific problems of women could be marginalized out of the
central debate about development.
9
In addition, it must be accepted, that men not always end immune to processes
of economic adjustment and productive transformation. The present society is
not the one of always; at the moment women accede to estates reserved
historically to men. To observe the impacts of these changes not only on women
but on men and more even of the social relations between men and women, will
allow to construct dynamic, sustainable and fair societies.
3.2. Financing for development
It exists a clear interrelation between the model of development and its forms of
financing. At the moment, the originating funds of the multilateral organisms
define the model of current growth in the developing countries. Today it is evident
that the great winner of this economic scheme has been the financial capital,
whose greater concentration occurs in the industrialized societies. On the other
hand, the same model generates the scenery in which the private capital flows.
The high mobility of these financial resources supported in the deregulation of
the capital markets, stimulates the flows that are characterized by their volatility
and facilitates speculation. With respect to the generation of internal resources
for development, those that the document of the Conference suppose as the
genuine source of financing, is limited by the incapacity of the countries to
generate internal savings and therefore the necessary investment. Also, every
time is more evident that the Official Development Aid (ODA),is not the element
that is going to define the future of the developing countries, taking into account
its reduce volume, the internal restrictions of the donors and the implicit
conditionality in itself.
The other pillar of resources generation, the liberalization of the markets of goods
and services, that was supposed to act as the dynamic element of growth in the
countries and the best allocation of the resources, did not reach the results
anticipated by the model promoters. First, because the free commerce is not so
free, indeed because those that preaches it do not apply it. The countries of the
first world continue subsidizing agriculture and imposing non-tariff barriers
according to their convenience, instruments that are forbidden to the developing
countries. Second, because the transnational enterprises control processes that
happen in different national spaces, and are not regulated at all. An additional
limitation is born of the priority that the model assigns to the world market and to
the external investment. This priority is translated in to damage of the internal
market as well as in the deterioration of the work force. For the previous reasons,
any proposal on financing for development must consider as essential, the
reformulation of the current economic model.
10
3.3.
Bases for a New Paradigm
As Dani Rodrik proposes, the opening of the economies to the world-wide
markets can be the source of many potential economic benefits, if it is
complemented with policies and national institutions. In fact, the countries that
grew more rapid from mid 70’s on, have been those that have invested their
gross national product and have maintained macro economic stability. Finally,
the efforts of development of the diverse countries do not have to converge in a
single model of " good economic behavior " (Rodrik, Dani, 1999).
In accordance to the previous idea, the pillars of a new proposal could be: first, to
value and to design an internal strategy of development, according to the
characteristics of each country, that complements the external effort. This implies
a policy of long term to recover the investment like the dynamic element of the
economy that adapts its institutions and their programs in diverse fields to the
new world-wide realities. In addition, searching new sources of growth, can
reduce the over-exploitation of the natural resources and a sustainable growth
becomes possible. Second, to establish and to define as great priority, a New
Social Contract, supported in all the economic and social actors and actresses,
recognizing that gender equality is fundamental in order to obtain the social
fairness based on the economic democracy. Third, neo-liberal orthodoxy must
be limited to its true dimensions, that is to the definition of the macroeconomic
policy. It should be stripped from the magic powers once attributed to it (Lopez,
Cecilia, 2001a).
The search of a new paradigm must lead to the improvement, in a significant
and sustainable way, of the well-being of all Latin Americans, within the new
world-wide context. When introducing the concept of gender equality,
development should drastically reduce the asymmetry between men and women.
After rising the previous concept, one will have advanced in the intention to
construct true fair societies. This is not only an ethical problem but one of
development (Lopez, Cecilia, 2001a).
3. 3.1. The Internal Strategy of Development
Without ignoring the potential advantages of the opening of the economies, the
internal efforts would have to take into consideration the interests and specific
problems of each country. When identifying critical fronts of action in order to
increase exports and to substitute imports, the objective must be the generation
of wealth and the equitable distribution of it. (Rodrik, Dani, 1999)
It must be considered that women do not have to be treated like a vulnerable
group, despite the predominance of discrimination elements. Women constitute
a majority of the absolutely heterogeneous population and within this group,
poverty predominates. To try to approach its realities with small projects of
11
development, limited resources and with welfare character, has demonstrated to
be an inoperative strategy. Women have had been included into " the great
leagues " and must be considered still in equalitarian terms with the men in
development policies. The central point is to recognize its specificities in the
diverse areas. One of great products of the Decade of Woman was not to reach
equality, which does not exist in this planet, but it was to make its contribution
visible and the barriers that face.
Taking as a reference, part of the previous criteria, leads to conclude that the
search of gender equality must be one of the objectives of the new paradigm.
When recognizing that men and women participate in diverse way in the different
productive activities, when key sectors are identified, the strategies must contain
criteria to prevent that the gender differences exclude men or women from
development. In this way productive enclosed processes will be obtained.
In order to stimulate the saving and the internal investment, critic variable to
generate wealth, it is necessary to explore the gender differences in relation to
these variables. There is not enough knowledge on this subject, but if the
demand by this type of analysis arises, the academy will have to respond.
The successful insertion of the national economy in the world-wide markets, can
favor female employment, since it has been already demonstrated by
experience. The important thing is to win the space competing with productivity
and not with low wages, as it is happening in many countries of the area.
3.3.2. A New Social Contract
The principle that should be applied is " economic democracy”, that states that
all human beings have the right to receive the necessary income for a dignify life
for her or his family (Lopez, Cecilia, 1999). Obvious this greater participation of
different sectors from the society in the economic production and its distribution
can generate a more equitable development as long as it goes accompanied of
greater access to power of all those that contribute to the generation of wealth.
Three are the elements to obtain this purpose: the creation of productive
employment, the leveling of opportunities and the increase of the labor
productivity in the sectors with low income.
The new Social Contract should have as priorities the employment generation,
equal opportunities for men and women and increases in productivity within the
poorest groups of the society. As a result, the unexplainable and unfair
differences between men and women should be reduced in order to build more
equalitarian societies.
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3.3.3. Macroeconomic Policy
The equilibrium in macroeconomic variables should be preserved, but the real
objectives of the economic policy, rate of growth, stability and the employment
are due to be considered (Ferrer, Aldo, 1996). The macroeconomic policy must
recognize the mistakes that have generated immense social costs in the Region.
Sufficient analyses exist to design strategies in this field that can be adjusted to
the new priorities of sustainable growth in economic, political and social terms
(Cepal, 2001). Since it has been mentioned, ignoring the true contributions of the
woman in terms of its reproductive work when the social cost is reduced, has
overestimated the real efficiency of economic adjustments. Therefore, equality of
gender and macroeconomics today constitute a new dimension of analysis that
contributes significantly to the social equity.
IV CONCLUSIONS
The debates on the financing for development, subject of this Conference, must
begin to recognize the fundamental problems of development itself. Definitively,
humanity expects real changes in guidelines, forms and paradigms to follow.
Particularly, developing societies, far away from the well-being levels that enjoy
the industrialized countries, are those that must impel these analyses. But even
the rich countries undergo at the moment the negative consequences of poverty,
inequality and the harmful feelings that these circumstances generate, in great
areas of the present world. In the context of globalization it is impossible to
ignore the poverty of many and the wealth of few.
The scheme of development imposed by the leaders of the world, conditions the
capacities of the individual nations. If new paradigms that recognize the
specificities of the countries are not adopted, the restrictions imposed by the
actual model- its non-sustainability, the little importance attributed to equality in
general and particularly gender equality- would limit the efforts that are made to
construct a fair and more dynamic world.
The world is facing today a deceleration of its rate of growth and Latin America
walks towards the stagnation. Without denying the importance of obtaining high
rates of economic growth, in developed and developing societies, poverty,
distribution and fairness are unable to wait. According to Galbraith, this is the
great debt that humanity maintains during centuries.
One of the great pending revolutions is the one that eliminates the unjust and
unexplainable inequalities between men and women. Gender equality must
clearly be recognized like key for growth. Identifying men and women as equal
avoids underestimating the contribution of half of the humanity and this is a
fundamental step to arrive at fair societies. The differences that still persist
between men and women demand changes more radical than the generated
13
ones by the present policies. The values, the norms, the social codes must
change so that the causes of the great ruling differences between men and
women may be eliminated, even in advanced societies. The gender slants that
impregnate the institutions, the markets and the economic processes, have been
sufficiently analyzed and, in many cases, they have been reinforced by the
macroeconomic policies and the strategies of development.
In the specific subject of the Conference, the discussion about how to eliminate
the financial barriers for development, demands deeper considerations than the
raised ones until now. The fiscal, financial and commerce systems have a social
meaning and are impregnated by norms of gender ignored by the economic
agents. The inclusion of gender in all process of political and economic decision,
simply does not mean " to add women and mix ". It implies adopting an approach
that is in fact transforming. It is about the integration to the public agenda, in a
cross-sectional way of the objectives of equality between the genders. It is also
the recognition of the contribution of the reproductive economy in the referring
proposals to the financing for development.
The equality of gender, the subject of development and its financing had been
boarded in this document from an integral vision. The fragmented approach of
the specific problems of women in development, generates not only incoherence
but it prevents to visualize the narrow relation between the economic order and
the gender order that sustains it.
This Conference cannot ignore the negative results in growth terms,
sustainability and equality, in Latin America. Searching new forms of financing
for development, the evaluation of the current model is obviously, urgent.
Between its great challenges is the overcoming of the excluding pattern that has
characterized the present societies.
14
Apendix I
THE NINETIES: THE GOOD, THE BAD AND THE UGLY
The Good
The Bad
The Ugly
On the Economic Side
1. Consolidation of the
Opening of the Economy in
Latinamerican countries
2.
Renewal of growth
macroeconomic stability
with

90s
3.3% per year
80s
year
1.45% per year PC
per year PC
1.0% per

-0.9%
3.
Low Fiscal Deficit: between
1 & 2 % of PIB
4.
Low Inflation: 10% per year
up to 1997 and one digit
inflation today

5.
6.
Exports: 8.9% growt h per
year
Foreign
Investment:
Significant Growth

Growth inferior to the one
needed to reduce poverty, 6
or 7% per year.
Inferior
to
the
Latinamerican figures for
1945 & 1980, 5.5% per
year or 2.7% P/C per year
Very
low
Latinamerican
export
figures
when
compare to the world's
total. Slightly superior to
5%
More than half of the
exports were originated in
Mexico.

Inadequate diversification of
products and markets

Low creation of new assets.

Fusion of existing assets:
40% of the total investment

Investment did not reach the
70s' level.

Excessive growth of Imports.

Commercial Deficit at similar
levels than in the 80s.

Deterioration
of
the
relationship
between
economic growth and foreign
accounts.

Non trasables
most dynamic.

Transable
sectors
participation.

Less
growth
of
the
Agriculture when compared
to the prior decade

Poor results on productivity,
the gap with rich countries
grew.

Medium labor productivity
rates inferior to the one in
1950 & 1980

Total productivity of factores
only grew 1.3% per year in
the 90s while it grew 2.1%
on the three prior decades.

Economic
concentration:
Winners; multinationals and
large corporations. Losers,
small and medium size
enterprises.

Open Unemployment: Grew
3 basis points during the
90s. Precipitously Rose in
sectors
the
lost
On the Social Side
1.
Women: Larger participation
on the labor market

High Unemployment.

High
participation
informal activities.
on
15
2.
Poverty:
Reduction
with
respect to the 80s' decade
97
80s
36%
3.

41%
Absolute number of Poor
increased to more than 200
million.
By the end of the 90s,
superior levels of poverty
than in the 80s.
Social
Expenditure:
Increased as a percentage of
PIB
90-91
10% of PIB
4.

some countries

Missed
advantage
Demographic Bonus

Increased
salary
gap
between
qualified
and
unqualified workers (18 to
24%)

Rural poverty stays constant

Income Distribution does not
improve and some countries
do not even reach the prior
three decades rates.

Only
half
of
the
Latinamerican
youth
population
consider
themselves to have better
opportunities
than
their
parents.
96-97
PIB
12.5% of
Expenditures
Criteria:
Major improvement

Equity Problems

Solidarity Problems

Universality Problems
of
Source: Lopez, Cecilia, 2000a Data from ECLAC
16
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