The EUROsociAL+ European Union Programme held the seminar "Care as the Fourth Pillar of Social Welfare Systems" at the Palacio San Martin, in Buenos Aires, in partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship of the Argentine Republic, the Ministry of Women, Gender and Diversity of the Nation and the Interdisciplinary Centre for Public Policies of the Alberto Hurtado University of Chile.
Foto cortesía de Cancillería de la República de Argentina
This Friday, the Palacio San Martín de la Cancillería Argentina hosted the regional seminar “Care as the Fourth Pillar of Social Welfare Systems” promoted by the Social Policies area of the EUROsociAL+ Programme with support from the Interdisciplinary Centre for Public Policies of the Alberto Hurtado University of Chile.
The purpose of the meeting was to contribute to the dialogue between the political players in Latin American countries, to reflect on a systemic organisation of care that is both sustainable and based on the principles of universality, solidarity, autonomy and social co-responsibility.
One of the conclusions drawn from the seminar is that, in recent years, the region has become determined to implement comprehensive care systems and to establish instruments for the exercise of the right to care for dependent people. This inclusion of the care agenda is accompanied by institutional statements that create an optimal setting to reflect and contribute to a greater understanding of the matter.
The Vice Chancellor of the Argentine Republic, Ambassador Pablo Tettamanti, opened the event in the presence of the Ambassador of the European Union in Argentina, Amador Sánchez Rico and María Cristina Perceval, Secretary of Equality and Diversity Policies of the Ministry of Women, Gender and Diversity of Argentina. “One of the priorities of our country is to guarantee a fairer redistribution of the burden of care”, said the Argentine Vice Chancellor, adding that “in this regard, the President of the Nation reported on the submission of a bill to establish a comprehensive care system with a gender perspective.”
The Ambassador of the European Union added that “Our societies are undergoing deep demographic and social transformations after the Covid-19 crisis. Considering care systems as an integrated pillar of social welfare systems is key to the exercise of rights as well as to the sustainability of the development that we promote. That is why the opportunity for exchange and reflection we had in Buenos Aires was so important, and we are honoured to support it from the European Union through EUROsociAL.” Towards the end of the event, Ambassador Sabina Frederic, who is responsible for the Argentine Agency for International Cooperation and Humanitarian Assistance, said that “the construction of an initiative where institutions from different countries can add their experiences and capacities in a process of mutual learning is not only an extremely enriching experience but also a boost to the promotion of development.”
The seminar was also attended by Celina Lezcano Flores, Minister of Women of Paraguay; Elisabeth Moreno, Minister of Equality between Men and Women, Diversity and Equal Opportunities of France (by video); Francisco Delgado Jiménez, Vice Minister of Human Development and Social Inclusion of Costa Rica; Lucía Cirmi Obón, National Director of Care of Argentina; Anne Caroline Posthuma, Director of the Inter-American Centre for the Development of Knowledge in Vocational Training, ILO/Cinterfor; Ernesto Villalba, expert in skills validation and certification from the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training, CEDEFOP; Julio Bango, sociologist, National Secretary of the Comprehensive Care System of Uruguay (2015-2020); Soledad Salvador, EUROsociAL+ expert, member of the Interdisciplinary Centre for Development Studies (CIEDUR); and Emanuele Pavolini, Ph.D. in Economic Sociology, Macerata University (Italy), as keynote speakers at the seminar.
EUROsociAL+: is a programme for cooperation between the European Union and Latin America that contributes to reducing inequality, improving levels of social cohesion and strengthening the institutions of 19 Latin American countries. It provides support for the process of designing, reforming and implementing public policy, focusing its action on the areas of gender equality, democratic governance and social policy.
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Video of the seminar
More information at: https://eurosocial.eu/encuentros/plazasocial/
