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History and Purpose of Establishment:
Initially, the Economic Commission for Latin America
(ECLA, CEPAL as its Spanish acronym) was established on
February 25, 1948 by the UN Economic and Social Council
(ECOSOC) Resolution 106(VI) and started to operate in the
same year.
With the decision dated July 24, 1984 and numbered
1984/67, the Caribbean region was included in the field
of activity of ECLA and the name of the Commission was
changed to ECLAC, while the Spanish acronym CEPAL was not
changed.
In 2017, Türkiye became a full member of ECLAC, which is
based in Santiago/Chile and is one of the five regional
commissions of the UN. It was established with the purpose
of coordinating practices aimed at contributing to the
economic development of Latin America and the Caribbean
and strengthening economic ties across the region and
with countries outside the region.
ECLAC, which celebrated its 75 th anniversary
in 2024, carries out activities aimed at the economic and
social development of the LAC region, such as collecting and
evaluating information/data; conducting technical
cooperation programs; developing projects in line with
the needs and priorities of the region; organizing
conferences, intergovernmental and expert meetings,
seminars, symposia and training workshops.
Sub-regional Offices and Country Offices:
In June 1951, the Commission established the ECLAC
Sub-regional Headquarters in Mexico to serve the needs of
Central America while in December 1966 the ECLAC
Sub-regional Headquarters for the Caribbean was
established in Trinidad and Tobago.
In addition, there are country offices in Buenos Aires,
Brazil, Montevideo and Bogota and a liaison office in
Washington.
Executive Secretary:José Manuel
Salazar-Xirinachs became Executive Secretary in 2022.
Executive Secretary Salazar-Xirinachs emphasizes the
development of concrete projects as well as statistical
work.
In this context, the 11 priority areas identified under
Executive Secretary Salazar-Xirinachs to transform the
development model of the LAC region and overcome the low
growth rate conundrum are as follows:
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Strengthening the capacity of States
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Fast, sustained, sustainable and inclusive
growth
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Reducing inequality and increasing social
mobility and cohesion
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Expanding social security and the welfare state
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Promoting equal opportunities in education and
vocational training
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Progress towards gender equality and the “care
society”
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Environmental breakthroughs to combat climate
change and promote sustainable growth
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Digital transformation
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Safe, orderly and regular migration
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Progress towards regional and global economic
integration
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Macroeconomics for development, strong and
healthy taxation
Member States:46 countries are members
of the Commission. 33 countries in Latin America and the
Caribbean are members of ECLAC, together with a number of
extra-regional Asian, European and North American
countries that have historical, economic and cultural
ties with the region. In addition, 14 Caribbean countries
are associate members of the Commission.
Türkiye’s Membership Process and Relations with
ECLAC:
During his official visit to Chile on January 31 -
February 2, 2016, H.E. President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
delivered a speech at ECLAC. Türkiye’s membership
application, which was made during the said visit, was
decided by the member countries of the Commission at the
ECLAC General Committee meetings held in New York on
January 30, 2017 and later approved and officially accepted
at the ECOSOC Meeting held in New York on July 25, 2017.
Former Minister of Foreign Affairs Mr. Mevlüt Çavuşoğlu
addressed the opening of the 38 th Session of
ECLAC on October 26, 2020 via video message.
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