Countdown to the Sustainable Development Forum 2026: On April 13-16, ECLAC Will Host Dialogues on Global, Regional and National Action

Latin American and Caribbean countries' annual gathering to evaluate regional progress and challenges in implementing the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development will take place on April 13-16, 2026 at the headquarters of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) in Santiago, Chile.

Four years before the deadline for achieving the 2030 Agenda, ministers, deputy ministers, undersecretaries and other government authorities - along with representatives of the United Nations system, regional organizations, development banks, parliaments, academia, the private sector and civil society - will participate in a series of dialogues on global, regional and national action at the ninth meeting of the Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Development.

The opening ceremony will be held on Tuesday, April 14, from 8:30 to 9:15 a.m. local time in Chile (GMT-4), with the participation of José Manuel Salazar-Xirinachs, ECLAC's Executive Secretary; Jorge Félix Rubio, Director-General for Economic Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Peru, the country that is serving as Chair of the Forum; and Li Junhua, the Under-Secretary-General for Economic and Social Affairs of the United Nations.

ECLAC's highest authority will present, on that very same Tuesday (April 14) at 2:30 p.m. local time in Chile, a document entitled The 2030 Agenda in Latin America and the Caribbean: Accelerating Implementation in a New Era of Uncertainty and Geopolitical Fragmentation, ninth report on regional progress and challenges in relation to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Latin America and the Caribbean.

In the dialogues on global action, the region's countries will examine the international commitments adopted in 2025 with regard to financing for development, climate change and social development, and will report on preparations for the 2026 United Nations Water Conference (United Arab Emirates, December 2-4).

In the dialogues on regional action, using the ninth report as context, the representatives will analyze in depth the extent of implementation on five of the 2030 Agenda Goals: SDG 6: Clean water and sanitation; SDG 7: Affordable and clean energy; SDG 9: Industry, innovation and infrastructure; SDG 11: Sustainable cities and communities; and SDG 17: Partnerships for the Goals.

Finally, in the dialogues on national action, attendees will exchange successful national experiences in accelerating the achievement of the SDGs, along with good practices and challenges in the preparation of the Voluntary National Reviews (VNRs) that countries will present at the United Nations High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (New York, July 7-15, 2026).

On Monday, April 13, prior to the official inauguration of the gathering in Santiago, three important events will take place: the Forum of Children, Adolescents and Youth of Latin America and the Caribbean, the Meeting of the Mechanism for Civil Society Participation and the Interfaith Forum of the Ninth Meeting of the Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Development. In addition, at least 46 side events are scheduled to be held.

The full programme of the meeting is available on the website https://foroalc2030.cepal.org/2026/en/programme .

Journalists and other members of the press who would like to attend this event in person are asked to register using this form: https://eventos.cepal.org/event/254/overview . They will receive an automated response by email once their registration has been accepted.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Submitting the registration form is a prerequisite for attending the meeting in person, but it does NOT guarantee access to the event. Local organizers can restrict entry, if need be, due to attendance capacity restrictions or for security or other reasons arising at the time. We thank you in advance for your understanding and respect for these conditions.

What: Ninth meeting of the Forum of the Countries of Latin America and the Caribbean on Sustainable Development.

When: Monday, April 13 to Thursday, April 16, 2026.

Who: Representatives of government, the United Nations system, multilateral organizations, development banks, parliaments, the private sector, academia and civil society.

Where: ECLAC's headquarters in Santiago, Chile (Av. Dag Hammarskjöld 3477, Vitacura).

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