Havana - Cuba assumed today the presidency of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) during the 37th session of the body, whose sessions take place here. Based at the Conference Center in Havana, the event is the major forum of the body, which positions equality as a fundamental principle for development, ECLAC''s executive secretary, Alicia Barcena, said.

The opening ceremony is attended by Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel, United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres, and the Secretary General of the Association of Caribbean States, June Summer.

According to Barcena, the forum should examine important issues to face the scourge of poverty in this area of the planet that continues to be the most unequal in terms of the distribution of wealth.

The beginning of the meeting had the hallmark of Cuban children's theater company La Colmenita, which with dances and songs paid tribute to ECLAC, which is celebrating its 70 years of existence in 2018.

As usual practice, different issues proposed by the host country were under discussion yesterday, this time they dealt with ECLAC's contribution to the Latin American and Caribbean economic and social thinking, south-south cooperation, and Cuba's implementation of the 2030 Agenda for sustainable development and foreign direct investment (FDI).

A paper is foreseen today on occasion of the 70th anniversary of ECLAC, with the speech by four former secretaries of ECLAC: Enrique Church, Jose Antonio Ocampo, Jose Luis Machinea and Hert Rosentlal.

The meeting will be held until Friday, May 11, in which a new study of ECLAC entitled 'The inefficiency of inequality' will be analyzed.