Radio Havana Cuba | The first Costa Rican female economist to head the Unctad

GENEVA, SEPTEMBER 13 (RHC) Costa Rican economist Rebecca Greenspan (pictured) has taken over as Secretary-General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (Unctad), becoming the first woman to assume the responsibility.

“I am honored to begin work at Unctad at a critical time for our world,” said Greenspan, who began her four-year career after being approved by the General Assembly last June.

He highlighted that Covid-19 has exposed the general inequalities and vulnerabilities of the world and its development paradigm, thus “as we recover from the pandemic, we have the opportunity to rebalance the global economy, enhance resilience and ensure shared prosperity. ”

“We must act today to transform trade and reshape our global economy to overcome barriers to greater prosperity for all and embark on a path of sustainable development that benefits all,” he said.

He declared that the fifteenth quadrennial conference of UNCTAD, scheduled for 3-7 October, will be an important opportunity for countries to take bold decisions to address the massive unmet needs in terms of trade, finance, investment and technology in developing countries. to counter the epidemic.

Prior to her appointment to Unctad Grynspan, she was the Ibero-American General Secretary, and was also the first woman to lead this organization.

She was also the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations and Associate Administrator of the United Nations Development Program, and the former Regional Director for Latin America and the Caribbean for the organization.

Prior to joining the United Nations, she was Vice President of Costa Rica from 1994 to 1998, Minister of Housing, Coordinating Minister for Economic and Social Affairs and Deputy Minister of Finance.

In addition, he was a member of the High Level Group on Financing for Development. (Source: PL)