On 4 May 2026, the inaugural meeting of the Bi-regional Pact on Care between the European Union and Latin America and the Caribbean (EU–LAC) will take place in Berlin, marking the start of the implementation of this bi-regional cooperation mechanism in a priority area for both regions.
The meeting is organised by the European External Action Service and the European Commission – Directorate-General for International Partnerships, in collaboration with the Pro Tempore Presidency of CELAC (Uruguay), the EU-LAC Foundation, the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia.
The meeting will bring together representatives of the Member States of the European Union and countries of Latin America and the Caribbean designated as national focal points for the Pact.
Background
Care systems in Europe, Latin America and the Caribbean are facing increasing demand due, among other factors, to population ageing and changes in the distribution of responsibilities within households. In this context, the EU–LAC Bi-regional Care Pact was adopted on 9 November 2025 during the IV CELAC–EU Summit in Santa Marta (Colombia) as an informal, voluntary cooperation mechanism open to countries from both regions.
The Pact aims to serve as a permanent forum for bi-regional dialogue and cooperation on the legal, social and economic dimensions of care systems, including the exchange of experiences, the conduct of comparative studies and the development of policy recommendations.
Objectives of the meeting
The inaugural meeting aims to launch the implementation of the Pact through:
- Establishing working procedures and coordination mechanisms;
- Defining the scope and priorities for the 2026–2027 period;
- Discussing initial proposals and possible funding commitments;
- Defining modalities for the participation of other stakeholders;
- Promoting coherence with other international instruments in the field of care;
- Positioning the Pact as an innovative instrument for bi-regional cooperation.
Participants will be invited to remain in Berlin for an additional day to attend an EU–LAC Multi-stakeholder Forum on long-term care challenges, to be held on 5 May 2026 and organised by the EU-LAC Foundation in the framework of the BMZ-GIZ-funded project “Care economy for sustainable and equitable economic development in Latin America and the Caribbean”.