Social spending and the labour market: recent trends and public policies

Abstract

As reported by the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in The Inefficiency of Inequality (ECLAC, 2018a, p. 69), “growth in the region’s economies tailed off following the rebound from the international financial crisis in 2010 and 2011. The average growth rate of 2.3% recorded between 2012 and 2017 was lower than the 3.8% the region posted between 2000 and 2008, and well below that achieved in other parts of the world such as South-East Asia (5.3%), North Africa (3.1%) and the largest European emerging economies (2.8%) during the same period” (ECLAC, 2018a, p. 69). ECLAC also noted that “although economic slowdown was largely due to external factors, the intensity with which these affected the region’s internal dynamics was also shaped by domestic considerations, some of which augmented the exogenous impact while others attenuated it. The domestic considerations are determined by individual national structures and institutional frameworks, including such elements as a country’s production pattern, tax structure, environmental regulations, governance of natural resources, labour institutions, education and health policies, care system, level of openness, financial deregulation and economic policy goals” (ECLAC, 2018a, p. 69). This highlights the interconnectedness of the different dimensions of sustainable development and the virtuous circle between social development, environmental sustainability and economic growth.