Draft first regional report on the implementation of the Montevideo Consensus on Population and Development

Chapter III
Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC)
Again, women’s mix of paid and unpaid work remains very different from men’s, which directly affects
their ability to attain to decision-making positions and leaves them more exposed to the effects of crises, in
the form not only of economic problems in the country but of demographic changes in the age structure as
well. Their labour market participation obviously depends on how well the country’s economy does; some
countries’ performance has contributed to the narrowing of participation gaps, but this has not been the case
in others. Irrespective of how the economy does, though, the value of reproductive, domestic and care work
needs to be reflected in satellite accounts for unpaid work, as indeed has been happening in more and more
countries. This also makes it easier to cope with one of the greatest challenges States face, that of population
ageing. In this context, dealing with growing demand for care means developing high-quality public services
that can free up time for female carers and enable them to access greater employment opportunities. At the
same time, there needs to be progress in redistributing care work, not only between the State, the labour
market and families, but between men and women in the domestic sphere.
In most of the countries, meanwhile, a favourable demographic dependency ratio offers a window
of opportunity up until 2035, something that has proved essential for progress with gender equality, with
women participating more in the paid employment market. While women are the majority of the population
and are substantially better educated than before, however, they do not yet participate equally in the market
for decent employment, as access problems are compounded by a persistent pay divide and occupational
segmentation, even in formal jobs. It is therefore essential to make greater use of the female demographic
dividend over the coming years, as this will help to improve living conditions for the whole population of the
region. To implement policies focused on greater access to decent work and higher productivity, employment
components need to be addressed in a way that is complementary to and coordinated with the demand for
care, a crucial area when it comes to attaining gender equality.
Besides the challenges mentioned, there are those of physical autonomy. Gender violence is a serious
and widespread problem that persists despite greater public visibility, growing citizen mobilization over recent
years and actions implemented by States. These actions have actually only highlighted part of the problem,
since in this area there is still the great challenge of adequately quantifying the problem. Given this situation,
there is a need to standardize surveys on violence against women and improve administrative records in
order to fully capture this persistent phenomenon. Stronger measures of prevention, assistance, protection
and redress for the women affected are also necessary. The more that gender divides in all areas narrow, the
better off Latin American societies will be, and this closing of divides is especially urgent when it comes to
femicide, the most extreme manifestation of gender violence and discrimination and a daily cause of avoidable
female deaths in the region.
To attain gender equality and women’s autonomy, as development policy goals, it is necessary to dismantle
social structures that are at the heart of inequality in Latin America and the Caribbean. Accordingly, both the
Montevideo Consensus and the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development address gender equality not only
as a specific goal but also as an approach that permeates the totality of the two agreements, something that
is reflected in the different subject areas analysed in this <strong>report</strong>. Similarly, there needs to be a comprehensive
approach to the different areas in which gender inequality is manifested by way of coordinated, synergistic
public actions that can overcome the difficulties entailed by intersectoral work.
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