From Trade Complementarity Within Latin America to Building Silk Roads to China: U.N. Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), "Relations between Latin America and the Caribbean and China: areas of opportunity for more productive, inclusive and sustainable development "

 

 

I wrote recently about Mexican movement toward Latin American regional development in the shadow of the interests and initiatives of the U.S. and China, but with a focus on events at the 4th Ministerial Meeting of CELAC-China (see, Trade Complementarity and Latin American Regionalism -- Transcript of Press Conference Claudia Sheinbaum at the Presidential Palace, Mexico City 13 May 2025).  Enter the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). On its Website, About ECLAC, it is written that ECLAC:

known by the Spanish acronym is CEPAL- was established by Economic and Social Council resolution 106(VI) of 25 February 1948 and began to function that same year. The scope of the Commission's work was later broadened to include the countries of the Caribbean, and by resolution 1984/67 of 27 July 1984, the Economic Council decided to change its name to the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC); the Spanish acronym, CEPAL, remains unchanged. ECLAC, which is headquartered in Santiago, Chile, is one of the five regional commissions of the United Nations. It was founded with the purpose of contributing to the economic development of Latin America, coordinating actions directed towards this end, and reinforcing economic ties among countries and with other nations of the world. The promotion of the region's social development was later included among its primary objectives. (About ECLAC)

In tine for the 4th Ministerial Meeting of CELAC-China ECLAC has produced and distributed its own contribution to that meeting. Entitled  "Relations between Latin America and the Caribbean and China: areas of opportunity for more productive, inclusive and sustainable development," ECLAC described the contribution in this way:

It describes the areas of opportunity for advancing towards a common cooperation agenda that fosters more productive, inclusive and sustainable development It draws on the ECLAC analysis of the development traps facing the region and the strategies to overcome them through a set of vital transformations and a new generation of productive development policies intended to drive higher and more sustained growth. With this in mind, the relationship between the region and China during the twenty-first century is examined, and found to be increasingly mature, complex and wide-ranging in areas such as trade, investment, financing, infrastructure and cooperation in science and technology. The document also highlights institutional progress made since the First Ministerial Meeting in 2015, as well as the multilateral mechanisms that have strengthened dialogue and cooperation between both parties. (Here)

 The Introduction and Table of Contents follow below (in English). Among the most interesting aspects of the analysis are the summary of the challenges to Latin American development: (1) low capacity for growth; (2) high inequality, low social mobility and weak social cohesion; and (3) low institutional capacity and ineffective governance. ("Relations between Latin America and the Caribbean and China, pp. 11-13). Also quite useful is the Diagram "Ten Structural Gaps in the Development Model" (Ibid., p. 14) which visualizes the ecologies of development challenges.

These challenges, of course, suggest both the possibilities for progress as well as the entry points for strategic exploitation by outside powers looking to maximize the attainment of their own interests through a series of transactions that while producing benefit for all parties (the win-win model of America First and Belt & Road Initiatives), may in the long run provide less progress than potentially attainable by the Latin American partners of these deals.

 

"Relations between Latin America and the Caribbean and China"

Introduction (pp. 7-8)

The present document is a contribution by the Economic Commission for Latin America and
the Caribbean (ECLAC) to the discussions of the Fourth Ministerial Meeting of the Forum of China and
the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC), to be held in Beijing on 13 May 2025.
ECLAC has pointed out that Latin America and the Caribbean is faced with three development
traps: one of low capacity for growth; another of high inequality and low social mobility and cohesion;
and a third of weak institutional capacities and governance. A major regional priority, then, is to
energize and change the direction of growth to make it stronger and more sustained, as well as more
inclusive and sustainable, through a great productive transformation supplemented by social and
environmental policies.

This being so, trade and investment, infrastructure development and science and technology
cooperation with Latin America and the Caribbean’s main trading partners are essential to escape
these development traps and drive indispensable change. Contributions to the financing of these and
other regional development needs are also crucial.

The region’s relations with its strategic partners can contribute substantially to this indispensable
change, which includes higher growth rates and more rapid processes of productive transformation, job
creation and poverty reduction. Strategic partners include China, the European Union, the United States
and the region itself.

Since the late 1990s and during the twenty-first century, the relationship between Latin America
and the Caribbean and China has been growing in maturity and complexity. For one thing, both have
undergone profound socioeconomic changes; for another, and no less importantly, there has been a
shift in international trade and investment flows, accompanied by the emergence of new regulations
and policies that are affecting them.

The relationship between Latin America and the Caribbean and China has also undergone profound
changes, such as the growing socioeconomic presence of China in the region and of the region in
China, and in the areas of trade, financing, investment and infrastructure projects (Dussel Peters, 2025a;
Salazar-Xirinachs, 2024). Again, global value chains have become increasingly sophisticated in respect
of technology and innovation in areas such as electric vehicles, renewable energy, digitalization and
inputs for numerous high-technology global value chains. In the current context of transformation and
reconfiguration of the international economic landscape, it is essential to understand the scope and
implications of the relationship between China and Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the
opportunities and potential for cooperation that it presents for the future.

The establishment of the CELAC-China Forum in 2015 marked a turning point in this relationship
and in mutual cooperation, and it has since become the main regional forum for promoting relations with
China. The three ministerial meetings of the Forum and the respective cooperation plans and joint action
plans for cooperation in key areas reflect commitments and potential in specific areas of cooperation.
This document contains four sections. The first examines the development traps faced by the region,
as noted above. The issues analysed reflect current needs that the region will have to address in the
short, medium and long term in the interests of more productive, inclusive and sustainable development.
Awareness of these conditions is essential for a broad appreciation of the importance of the region’s
relationship with its strategic partners.

The second section examines five areas of socioeconomic relations between Latin America and
the Caribbean and China in the twenty-first century: the current international situation, trade in goods,
investment, financing and infrastructure projects. The analysis will provide an understanding of the
trends that have contributed to a more mature, complex and dynamic relationship in the twenty-first
century, as well as the challenges for future changes in it

The third section reviews existing mechanisms for regional cooperation between Latin America
and the Caribbean and China (without overlooking bilateral, multilateral and subregional cooperation
or cooperation with groups of countries in the region) and highlights the priorities that have driven
cooperation with China.

The fourth and last section focuses on areas of opportunity for strengthening and energizing the
relationship between Latin America and the Caribbean and China in the interests of more productive,
inclusive and sustainable development. Among other areas, these include institutional arrangements,
trade, financing, investment, infrastructure, science and technology, and cultural relations