The European Union and sixteen countries from Latin America and the Caribbean —Colombia, Barbados, Belize, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Grenada, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Paraguay, Trinidad and Tobago, and Uruguay— launched, within the framework of the IV CELAC–EU Summit, the Bi-regional Pact on Care. This cooperation framework places people’s well-being, dignity and equality at the centre of the partnership between both regions. The declaration remains open for endorsement by other countries in the region.
The Pact establishes a permanent forum for dialogue based on shared values, with the aim of strengthening care systems and ensuring access to quality and affordable care services as a common priority. It also seeks to promote a fairer distribution of care responsibilities among families, the private sector and the State, as well as between women and men.
Within this framework, the EU-LAC Foundation will play a central role in the implementation of the Pact by supporting the organisation of meetings among representatives of EU Member States, European institutions and the participating Latin American and Caribbean countries. The Foundation will also facilitate the participation of civil society and academia, thereby reinforcing the inclusive and participatory dimension of the process. The launch in Santa Marta marks only the first step: over the coming months, participating countries will define the frequency and content of exchanges, consultation modalities and potential financing mechanisms for the initiatives.
Participating countries will designate focal points to exchange experiences and good practices on care policies, programmes and infrastructures, training and professionalisation of caregivers, as well as measures to reduce and recognise unpaid care work. The Pact will also promote joint and comparative studies and foster cooperation in national, regional and multilateral projects focused on innovation and adaptation to local contexts.
This initiative responds to shared challenges faced by Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean, such as accelerated population ageing, growing demand for care, shortages of qualified professionals, precarious working conditions in the sector and the need to address and recognise the burden of unpaid domestic and care work. It also reflects a common commitment to protecting the most vulnerable and recognising care work as a driver of social justice, inclusive growth and human development.
The Bi-regional Pact on Care builds on previous regional and multilateral commitments that promote the recognition and value of care work, such as the European Care Strategy, the Buenos Aires Commitment, the Tlatelolco Commitment and the 2023 proposal drafted by ECLAC. It is also aligned with the principles set out in CEDAW, ILO Conventions 189 and 156, the conclusions of the Commission on the Status of Women (2022, 2024 and 2025) and the agenda of Sustainable Development Goals 5.4, 3, 8 and 10. Furthermore, the Pact responds to a long-standing demand from civil society organisations across both regions, which since the III EU–CELAC Summit in 2023 have advocated for its establishment as a key initiative for social cooperation.
The EU-LAC Foundation has been one of the main promoters of the Pact. Among its contributions are:
-
The publication “Towards Comprehensive Care Policies and Systems with People at the Centre: Dialogues between Latin America, the Caribbean and the European Union”, resulting from a series of five interregional dialogues on integrated care systems.
-
The High-Level Dialogue “Foundations for a Bi-regional Pact on Care between Latin America, the Caribbean and the European Union”.
-
The Multi-stakeholder Forum on the Bi-regional Pact on Care and a Digital Consultation to enrich the draft Pact.
Taken together, the Bi-regional Pact on Care represents a new milestone in relations between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean, expanding cooperation into one of the most essential areas of human life: people’s well-being.