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

<strong>Draft</strong> <strong>first</strong> <strong>regional</strong> <strong>report</strong> on the implementation of the Montevideo Consensus on Population and Development
Chapter III
A. Full integration of population dynamics into
sustainable development with equality
and respect for human rights
1. Introduction
The priority measures agreed in chapter A of the Montevideo Consensus on Population and Development
relate to the three pillars (social, economic and environmental) of sustainable development and the integration
of population issues into public policies and planning in pursuit of such development. In addition to outlining
the <strong>regional</strong> vision for sustainable development, this section highlights the contribution that can be made
by a knowledge of demographic dynamics and their integration, within a human rights framework, into
programmes and actions aimed at the eradication of poverty and inequality, bearing in mind the imperative
that the needs of current generations are not to be met in a way that compromises the capacity of future
generations to meet theirs.
It is well recognized that changes in population dynamics bring challenges and opportunities for sustainable
development. Accordingly, it is essential for demographic dynamics to be integrated into the whole national
planning process from formulation to implementation, always provided this is on a basis of human rights and
respect for nature in all its diversity. Chapter A of the Montevideo Consensus on Population and Development
is comprehensive, encompassing the priority measures of the other chapters, and accordingly Sustainable
Development Goal (SDG) indicators relating to the different dimensions of well-being, such as health, education,
work, the environment, basic services, infrastructure, human settlements and participation (ECLAC, 2017a),
were employed for the purposes of <strong>regional</strong> follow-up.
From this perspective, and in the light of the information available while this <strong>report</strong> was being prepared, this
chapter’s follow-up of the priority measures of the Montevideo Consensus will seek to take in all their dimensions,
although two specific areas will be particularly stressed. The <strong>first</strong> concerns priority measures 1, 2, 4, 5 and 6,
dealing with public policies and actions to eradicate poverty, exclusion and inequality and the centrality of human
rights and sustainability. The second concerns priority measures 3, 99 and 107 (the latter two belonging to chapter
J of the Montevideo Consensus), dealing with public institutions responsible for population and development
issues and the participation of civil society in implementing and following up the Montevideo Consensus.
Although the region has progressed towards the chapter A goals, many challenges remain. This chapter,
like other related ones, will go into greater detail on developments in the region in the years since the adoption
of the Montevideo Consensus agreements, on the basis of national <strong>report</strong>s and <strong>regional</strong> follow-up indicators:
(i) Economic circumstances have not favoured Latin America and the Caribbean in the five years for
which the Montevideo Consensus has been implemented. In this period, and mainly its latter part,
the declining poverty trend observed in the past decade has been reversed and income inequality
has narrowed more and more slowly. This is due to a sharp rise in poverty in some countries with
large populations. Nonetheless, poverty and income inequality have continued to decline in most of
the region’s countries, albeit more and more slowly.
(ii) Negative macroeconomic results in some countries have been reflected in rising unemployment and
continuing high levels of informality. Conversely, basic electricity and running water infrastructure,
whose coverage was already high, has continued to expand. Nonetheless, the deficiencies of basic
sanitation services remain a huge challenge for the region, not only because of the health implications,
but also because of the issue of environmental damage.
(iii) The region’s countries have not taken full advantage of a demographic situation in which the age
structure is favourable to economic growth. However, there has been considerable progress in local
planning and in the integration of population issues into the development agenda, chiefly as regards
medium- and long-term planning for population ageing.
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