How’s Life in Latin America?
Measuring Well-being for Policy Making
Many Latin American countries have experienced improvements in income over recent decades, with several of them now classified as high-income or upper middle-income in terms of conventional metrics. But has this change been mirrored in improvements across the different areas of people’s lives? How’s Life in Latin America? Measuring Well-being for Policy Making addresses this question by presenting comparative evidence for Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) with a focus on 11 LAC countries (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay). Spanning material conditions, quality of life, resources for future well-being, and inequalities, the report presents available evidence on well-being both before and since the onset of the pandemic, based on the OECD Well-being Framework. It also identifies priorities for addressing well-being gaps and describes how well-being frameworks are used in policy within Latin America and elsewhere around the world, providing lessons for governments on what is needed to put people’s well-being at the centre of their action. The report is part of the EU Regional Facility for Development in Transition for Latin America and the Caribbean.
Also available in: Spanish
Policy through a well-being lens: Experiences from LAC and wider OECD countries
The LAC region faces a number of persistent challenges to societal well-being, which are being aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Addressing these challenges calls for a multidimensional approach to public policy. This chapter describes how such an approach can help LAC countries to address the highly interconnected challenges they face by: 1) systematically focusing government action on the well-being outcomes of greatest need; 2) fostering a more coherent, whole-of-government approach to improving societal well-being; 3) encouraging more anticipatory governance; 4) strengthening the social contract between governments and citizens; and 5) leveraging new forms of international co-operation. Practical examples are provided of how a multidimensional approach can be embedded throughout the policy cycle.
Also available in: Spanish