Recent studies and analyses have shown that economic growth in Latin America during the past decade has been accompanied by an improvement in income distribution and poverty reduction. The region has also gained ground in politics (toward democracy), and its governments have implemented strategies for (global) economic change. However, socio-economic deprivation in several categories and the persistence of social inequality, now more intense in large and intermediate cities, challenge structural economic change and democratic discourse itself.
It is essential to tackle these inequalities, which threaten not only the economy but the democracies themselves, by reprocessing social policy instruments. One challenge faced by democracy is the creation of social instruments to make the people participants and architects of their societies’ decisions; such a goal requires equal opportunities, fair income distribution, and strong and credible institutions.
Equal opportunities come with a strong state capable of developing a social policy – by investing in education, healthcare, and housing, and by developing a labor policy that ensures industrial relations with quality employment and large workforce participation. At the same time, these policies contribute to a more equitable income distribution and to an increased training and knowledge, which enables individuals to participate more actively in policy making, democracy, and governance.
Taking this as our starting point, what kind of state is needed for such a reconfiguration? What are the implications for democracy and social policy? What kind of state capacity requires an alternative development model? What is the potential and what are the limits to civil society’s role in ensuring democracy and correcting poverty and income distribution inequality?