United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (UNECLAC)

The Economic Commission for Latin America was established by ECOSOC in 1948, while its scope was later broadened to include the countries of the Caribbean, hence, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean.

The Economic Commission for Latin America was established by ECOSOC in 1948, while its scope was later broadened to include the countries of the Caribbean, hence, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. ECLAC’s purpose is to contribute to the economic and social development of Latin America and the Caribbean, to coordinate the necessary actions directed towards this end and to reinforce the economic ties among the region’s countries and other nations.

Since 1996, the mission of ECLAC has been reformulated to place emphasis on the important role it plays as a centre of excellence that is responsible for supporting the region’s countries in the comprehensive analysis of the development process. This reformulated mission includes design, monitoring and evaluation of public policies and the provision of expertise, advisory services and training, as well as support for regional and international cooperation and coordination activities. ECLAC continues to function as an active forum for dialogue between the region’s countries and other stakeholders on both challenges and opportunities facing Latin America and the Caribbean.

Energy at UNECLAC

ECLAC’s work is divided among ten programme divisions and the division most involved in the field of energy is the Natural Resources and Infrastructure Division, which consists of the following thematic work areas: water, energy, mining, and transportation and infrastructure.
It will address the contribution to sustainable development of natural resources, assets and services, transportation and public infrastructure in the countries of the region. In the energy sector, the countries of the region can still improve their knowledge and capacity in sustainable energy technologies, with emphasis on energy efficiency, renewable energy and biofuels. ECLAC will also pay special attention to the oil market and to establishing the price of that product, and will explore other energy sources such as coal and nuclear alternatives. In this context, the objective of this component of the work programme is to develop a series of policy recommendations, tools and resources to promote energy efficiency and increased use of renewable energy as a reliable source of energy in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Services provided by UNECLAC include:

• Advisory services to member States on: energy and sustainable development matters;
• design and application of energy plans and policies in the hydrocarbon and powersector;
• reviewing sector regulations and advising countries on regulatory frameworks;
• contract negotiations and renegotiation; improving management techniques in the energy sector (plus advisory services)
• Strengthening the capacity of national institutions in energy policies and providing technical assistance to develop national capacity for energy project evaluation and economic regulations
• Preparing studies on: energy panorama and sectoral perspectives for the specific country / region; potentials and use of new and renewable sources of energy in the region and promoting the development of specific energy sources (e.g., geothermal); methodologies and analytical instruments for energy studies and evaluation (plus technical assistance);
• restructuring of the energy industry in member States (plus technical assistance); the interrelationship between energy and economic development, energy and natural resources and environment, energy and social aspects
• Organizing regional/interregional seminars on energy development and planning and supporting regional/subregional training seminars/courses on energy development, planning and regulation
• Promoting energy efficiency policies and implementation of “ad-hoc” regulatory frameworks in member States.