25 July 2013: The Secretariat of the UN High-level Panel on the Post-2015 Development Agenda (HLP) and the International Planned Parenthood Foundation (IPPF) hosted a Caribbean Dialogue on the HLP and the Post-2015 Agenda, via teleconference, on 25 July 2013. Speakers from Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) shared their perspectives on the final report of the Panel, highlighting remaining issues to be addressed, and responded to questions.

Ambassador Patricia Espinosa, Government of Mexico and HLP member, welcomed the report’s goal of eradicating extreme poverty and emphasized connections between the developed and the developing world, calling for “stronger responsibility across countries for the future development agenda.”

Dona Da Costa Martinez, Family Planning Association of Trinidad and Tobago, stressed that some issues continue to be “taboo” in the region, and noted the inability to “situate sexual and reproductive rights in a development conversation,” which she said could contribute to negative outcomes on gender equality, health and poverty in LAC. She pointed to limited implementation of agreed commitments in this regard and a need to increase the scope of policy and legal frameworks. She recommended supporting national networks of civil society organizations (CSOs) to contribute to such efforts, including by reestablishing the Caribbean Women’s Desk and strengthening the National Women’s Department. Diane Quarless, Economic Commission for LAC (ECLAC), highlighted gender-based violence and climate change as significant Caribbean issues.

In response to a question on the next steps in the Caribbean on the post-2015 consultations, Diego Antoni, UN Development Programme (UNDP) said efforts are underway to synthesize LAC consultations, including six that took place in small island developing States (SIDS), and he said dialogues and information sharing will continue. He noted that future efforts will also include a focus on stronger field-level engagement. [Dialogue Audio File and Report Summary]