24 May 1989

15th plenary meeting

Economic situation of women in Latin America and the Caribbean

The Economic and Social Council,

Taking account of the fact that the debtor countries of Latin America and the Caribbean are undergoing an economic crisis manifested, inter alia, by the stagnation of their economies and the unprecedented drop in their per capita income,

Considering the negative effect of the economic crisis on social indicators, particularly those relating to the status of women,

Taking account of the analysis of the difficult situation of Latin American and Caribbean women prepared by the Fourth Regional Conference on the Integration of Women into the Economic and Social Development of Latin America and the Caribbean, held under the auspices of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean,

Taking account of the need to face, at the national, regional and international levels, the problems in the debtor countries that are hampering the implementation of the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women,

Recommends that:

(a) The organizations of the United Nations system, in their programmes for the improvement of the status of women, take account of the problems facing women in the debtor countries of Latin America and the Caribbean;

(b) Documentation on priority themes prepared by the Secretary-General for submission to the Commission on the Status of Women identify the differences between the various national and regional situations and highlight the specific problems affecting women in the context of the economic crisis in Latin America and the Caribbean;

(c) The Secretary-General pay special attention to the obstacles originating in the economic stagnation caused, inter alia, by the burden of the external debt in his report to the Commission at its thirty-fourth session on the review and appraisal of the implementation of the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement of Women;

(d) The recommendations put forward by the Commission for future action at the national and international levels include an appeal to the appropriate parties in the debtor and creditor countries so as to create better conditions for the effective implementation of the Forward-looking Strategies.