Department of Economic and Social Affairs 
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The Department provides technical assistance and training, conducts research and shares experiences in priority areas of social development, with special emphasis on projects geared toward institutional strengthening and manpower training; analysis of unemployment and underemployment problems; community organization and participation; job creation; and responsiveness to the dire poverty of the more vulnerable population groups.
Social investment funds, institutions and programs to conquer poverty in the member countries, ministries of labor and public and private agencies all participated in the Department's efforts to provide cooperation and to promote technical exchange.
Three seminars/workshops were held: "Alternative Means to Finance Anti-Poverty Programs" in Chile; "Public Participation in Anti-Poverty Programs" in El Salvador; and "Targeting Poverty" programs in Uruguay. In cooperation with the Central American Regional Commission of Social Affairs (CRAS) a workshop was held in El Salvador on "The Role of the FISES in Assisting Poor, Small-scale Farmers in Central America". Participating in these activities were 80 executives and technicians of institutions in 23 member countries.
The First Conference of the Social Network was held in Ecuador and was attended by 39 high-level executives and technicians of national institutions responsible for poverty policies and programs in 23 countries, and observers from international cooperation agencies, the World Bank, the IDB, ECLAC, the United Nations, the UNDP, UNICEF and PAHO. The Conference adopted the Quito Accord, which contains specific recommendations to steer regional and national activities to conquer poverty. Areas where countries can work together and exchange experiences and resources were identified and appear in the Annual Action Plan to which the General Secretariat will continue to provide support, working for complementarity with other organizations, particularly the IDB.
The Department sponsored horizontal cooperation activities in the form of technical internships, visits to observe projects in progress and sharing of information and methods among institutions and programs in Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Guyana, Mexico, and Uruguay.
Activities carried out in Dominica under the "Social and Agricultural Development" Project focused on the extreme poverty in eight rural areas. Local governments and institutions, community groups and parent committees organized and jointly participated in these activities, choosing selected schools as a starting point.
With the Project on "Support for the International Technical Cooperation Program of the National Solidarity Program", cooperation continues to be provided to implement Mexican-Latin American and Caribbean horizontal cooperation activities in the form of projects and specific activities that PRONASOL is conducting to assist the anti-poverty programs of countries in the region.
The Project on "Technical Cooperation to Indigenous and Nongovernmental Social Organizations" is providing support to strengthen the ability of 13 networks of social organizations and their members to develop training activities, communications and marshal resources for productive, socio-cultural and environmental projects.
In The Bahamas, there will be more educational activities to provide training opportunities in the areas of tourism, agriculture, crafts and cultural development.
The Youth Business Center of Barbados improved its programs of activities and increased the resources it invests to assist young entrepreneurs.
In Belize, the Department cooperated with the Government to devise and launch the Youth Start Plan, designed to combine the training and financial support activities that a number of government institutions make available for young people. The Department also cooperated with the Central Statistics Office.
In Colombia, activities were conducted to assist the Colombian Confederation of Nongovernmental Organizations with managing international technical cooperation and improving management- and training-related matters in the member federations.
In Dominica, training has been given in construction, automotive mechanics, leather working, painting, soldering, tailoring, furniture making and tourism-related activities, thereby opening up new employment opportunities for young people. Training was also provided to inmates at the State Prison, to help them rejoin society upon their release. The training programs are now being extended into rural areas as well.
In Ecuador, technical assistance is being provided to farm cooperatives in the Esmeraldas region to set up a small-scale fish-meal processing plant that will enable farmers in the region to raise small and large livestock and that will increase the earnings of the members of the farm cooperatives.
In El Salvador, cooperation and technical assistance were provided to the National Reconstruction Office to train mayors and municipal government personnel so that those municipalities can qualify for the financing and external loans offered for social works, transportation and communications. Cooperation is also being provided to the National Family Office, to build up its ability to devise social projects and programs and to improve its institutional management.
In Guatemala, the Department has worked with the National Women's Office to develop a program for the integral advancement of farm and indigenous women. Technical staff of governmental and nongovernmental organizations (32), outreach workers (35) and women's groups (95) received training for the program. The training was given in Spanish, Kaqchikel, K'iché, Mam and Q'eqchi. The National Fund for Peace, FONAPAZ, also received support to put together the physical and social infrastructure needed in embattled areas, to facilitate the reassimilation of demobilized, displaced and repatriated persons once the respective peace accords are signed.
In Jamaica, a series of workshops were held, which provided 100 young people with help in starting up small businesses in the tourism sector. Training programs were also provided for business advisers.
In Nicaragua, the Department assisted the Nicaraguan Agrarian Reform Institute (INRA) with formulation of a national property entitlement and normalization plan and a national survey of the normalized property, which is being carried out with resources from the World Bank.
In Panama, the Department continued to work with the Ministry of Labor to carry out the projects to promote and generate employment in the metropolitan area. A pilot project was conducted to increase productivity in small businesses, and research was conducted on the possibility of creating new positions in manufacturing businesses in the metropolitan area.
In Paraguay, a project is being conducted with the Rural Welfare Institute to consolidate selected agrarian reform settlements. The work focuses on production, organization and infrastructure in the Kororo-í settlement and three other adjacent settlements in the Department of San Pedro, consisting of some 500 families spread over an area of 4,000 hectares.
In the Dominican Republic, the Department continued to work with the Technical Migration Unit of the National Planning Office, attached to the Office of the President, ONAPLAN, to conduct research on internal and international migration patterns in the country.
In St. Kitts and Nevis, a sample survey was conducted to provide information on employment planning and vocational training.
In Venezuela, the Department is cooperating with the Social Management Foundation of the Ministry of the Family to organize a data system with which to manage social programs.
In the Caribbean region, the Department worked with governmental and nongovernmental organizations to establish the Caribbean Youth Enterprise Services Trust, the purpose of which is to help set up national funds that will provide resources and start-up capital to young entrepreneurs.
The Inter-American Social Development Center, CIDES, and the Government of Uruguay conducted an Inter-American Seminar on "Targeting Poverty", in which delegates from 14 member States participated. The headquarters of CIDES was the site of the Inter-American Course on Social Development and Poverty Policies and Programs, held from November 1 through December 2, and attended by 20 fellowship recipients from 18 member States