untitled design

Latin America and the Caribbean are expected to grow 2.1% in 2022

The Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) is forecasting an average growth of 2.1% for the region this year, well below the 6.2% recorded in 2021.

The annual report, Preliminary Balance of the Economies of Latin America and the Caribbean 2021, released today (12), in addition to the forecast of a slowdown in growth this year, also analyzes issues such as asymmetries in access to vaccination, high unemployment rates, especially among women, and inflation.

The ECLAC report points out how growth estimates and other economic indicators reflect the impact suffered by countries in the region as a result of the Covid-19 crisis.

“Latin America and the Caribbean grew, on average, 6.2% (in 2021), but when we look at Central America and Mexico we are at 6%, and when we look at Central America without Mexico we are at 6.7%, a very important growth, with Panama as one of the most important economies. In the case of South America, Peru, with 13.5%; also Chile, with 11.8%; and Argentina, with 6.8%, very important growth in these economies”, explained Alicia Bárcena, executive secretary of the United Nations Regional Commission.

Brazil presented a growth of 4.7% last year.

According to ECLAC, the expected average growth of 2.1% for this year reflects a high heterogeneity between countries and subregions: the Caribbean will grow 6.1% (excluding Guyana), Central America will grow 4.5% , while South America will grow 1.4%.

“The expected slowdown in the region in 2022, together with the structural problems of low investment and productivity, poverty and inequality, require that strengthening growth be a central element of policies, while considering inflationary pressures and risks macro-financial”, said Bárcena.

Regarding access to vaccination, the report points out that the 33 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean have 60.1% of the population with a complete vaccination schedule. The most advanced country is Chile (86.6%), followed by Cuba (85.9%), Uruguay (76.9%) and Argentina (73.2%). Brazil appears in seventh in the ranking, with 67.6% of people with a complete vaccination schedule.

Inflation

According to ECLAC, last year there were high inflation rates in most countries in the region, led by increases in food and energy (inflation averaged 7.1% in November, excluding Argentina, Haiti, Suriname and Venezuela), and these highs are expected to persist into 2022.

In another context, the report points out that financing for development is also essential to support policy and investment spaces.

And that it is necessary to expand and redistribute liquidity from developed to developing countries; strengthen development banks; reform the architecture of international debt; provide countries with a set of innovative instruments aimed at increasing debt repayment capacity and avoiding excessive indebtedness.

work and employment

Regarding occupations, in 2021, ECLAC shows that 30% of jobs lost in 2020 were not recovered.

In addition, inequality between men and women was accentuated, which reflects the burden of care on women and the lower dynamism of sectors that concentrate female employment, such as services.

“Women are really left out and in 2021 more than 38% of the jobs held by women ended up during the crisis and do not recover. In the case of men, this number is 21%, which is, as you can see, a slightly lower figure. It’s not good, but it’s a smaller number than that of women. And between 2020 and 2021, the drop in labor participation affected more women, who stopped looking for a job and, certainly, in homes with children under 5 years old, it had a greater impact on care in the case of women,” said Bárcena.

For 2022, ECLAC projects an unemployment rate of 11.5% for women – slightly lower than the 11.8% registered in 2021, but still much higher than the 9.5% existing before the pandemic in 2019 -, while for the unemployment would be 8.0% this year, almost the same as in 2021 (8.1%), but still well above the 6.8% recorded in 2019.

Reference: CNN Brasil

You may also like

Get the latest

Stay Informed: Get the Latest Updates and Insights

 

Most popular