Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) governments reacted swiftly and pre-emptively to protect their citizens and contain the spread of COVID-19 in the region and its impact on the economy. However, the region struggled to contain the levels of contamination, notably due to the prevalence of the informal economy and the limitations of health infrastructure and social protection systems. On the economic front, the region was already in a weak situation at the time the pandemic hit, and now has less fiscal space than in 2008 to mitigate the deeper recession that will result from the 2020 outbreak. Focusing on the 15 countries that are a part of the Steering Group of the OECD LAC Regional Programme (Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay), this note provides an update on the previous note published in May 2020. It highlights the government measures enacted to mitigate the crisis and considers long-term policy considerations towards the objective of building back a better future, with more inclusive, sustainable and resilient economies.
COVID-19 in Latin America and the Caribbean: An overview of government responses to the crisis
Policy paper
OECD Policy Responses to Coronavirus (COVID-19)
Share
Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Abstract
In the same series
-
Policy paper11 October 2022
-
Policy paper30 August 2022
-
21 April 2022
-
Policy paper17 March 2022
-
Policy paper17 March 2022
Related publications
-
21 November 2024
-
21 November 2024
-
21 November 2024
-
21 November 2024
-
21 November 2024