sustainable development 20 years on from the ... - José Eli da Veiga

51
In much of the region, there is still time to take advantage of the demographic dividend and invest
effectively in the universal provision of basic services and good-quality education (see figure I.15).
A virtuous cycle between demographics and economic and social conditions began in the region as of
<strong>20</strong>02, thanks to the boom phase of the business cycle and greater economic growth (see section B). This
has brought opportunities for social mobility by strengthening the middle classes and increasing
household income in a context of fewer dependents per family.
Figure I.15
LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN: PERIOD FOR WHICH THE DEPENDENCY RATIO
REMAINS BELOW TWO DEPENDENTS FOR EVERY THREE WORKING-AGE INDIVIDUALS
A. Latin America (19 countries) B. The Caribbean (12 countries and territories)
<strong>20</strong>11
<strong>20</strong>11
Cuba
Chile
Brazil
Costa Rica
Colombia
Venezuela (Bol. Rep. of)
Panama
Mexico
Peru
Ecuador
Argentina
El Salvador
Dominican Rep.
Nicaragua
Paraguay
Haiti
Honduras
Bolivia (Plur. State of)
Guatemala
1970 1980 1990 <strong>20</strong>00 <strong>20</strong>10 <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> <strong>20</strong>30 <strong>20</strong>40 <strong>20</strong>50 <strong>20</strong>60 <strong>20</strong>70
Aruba
Netherlands Antilles
Barbados
United States
Virgin Islands
Bahamas
Puerto Rico
Trinidad and Tobago
Guyana
Suriname
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines
Jamaica
1970 1980 1990 <strong>20</strong>00 <strong>20</strong>10 <strong>20</strong><strong>20</strong> <strong>20</strong>30 <strong>20</strong>40 <strong>20</strong>50 <strong>20</strong>60 <strong>20</strong>70
Source: Latin American and Caribbean Demographic Centre (CELADE) – Population Division of ECLAC, population
estimates and projections, <strong>20</strong>07 for Latin America; United Nations, “World Population Prospects: The <strong>20</strong>06 Revision.
Population Database” [online database] http://esa.un.org/unpp/ for the Caribbean.
Benefiting from the demographic dividend however, depends on the adoption of macroeconomic
policies that will encourage productive investment (Bloom, Canning and Sevilla, <strong>20</strong>03; Adioetomo and
others, <strong>20</strong>05; Wong and Carvalho, <strong>20</strong>06). It will also require heavy investments in human capital,
especially in young people (see section 1 and chapter III). Suitable, comprehensive education and
employment policies are needed to tap the benefits of the demographic dividend for education coverage
and leverage its effect on poverty reduction and <strong>sustainable</strong> <strong>development</strong>. For some countries, many of
them in the Caribbean, the demographic dividend is petering out. For many others in the region, it is just
beginning or has yet to start (ECLAC/UNFPA, <strong>20</strong>09).
As the transition progresses, older persons will come to represent a proportionally larger section
of the population, making it essential to take action now to face the challenges posed by an older society.
The opportunity offered by the demographic dividend must be leveraged to promote decent work, social
protection and the savings capacities of today’s youth (ECLAC/UNFPA, <strong>20</strong>09). An overview of the
action being taken in the countries of Latin America shows that many have begun to prepare for
population ageing. Capacity-building is under way to enable public agencies to respond to and channel
the needs of older persons and to coordinate public policy in the sectors involved. Many countries have
adopted special legal instruments for older persons. Non-contributory pension systems have formed one
of the pillars of recent efforts to build social protection in several countries in the region, and this has
enabled governments to offer greater economic security to large swathes of the adult population not