The Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean is a subsidiary body of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) and the main United Nations intergovernmental forum on women’s rights and gender equality in the region. Unique in the world, it has been convened regularly since 1977 to analyze the regional and subregional situation regarding women’s autonomy and rights, and to present public policy recommendations on gender equality in line with regional and international agreements. It is organized by ECLAC, as the Secretariat of the Conference, and has been held in coordination with UN Women since 2020.

At the meetings of the Regional Conference on Women, ECLAC member States adopt commitments that make up the Regional Gender Agenda, a profound, progressive, comprehensive, and cumulative roadmap that guides public policies in the region to achieve gender equality; guarantee the rights of women, adolescents, and girls in all their diversity; promote the exercise of their autonomy; and advance the sustainable development of the region.

At the XVI Regional Conference on Women, held at the Tlatelolco University Cultural Center in Mexico City from 12 to 15 August 2025, under the theme “Transformations in the political, economic, social, cultural, and environmental spheres to promote the care society and gender equality,” ECLAC member States adopted the Tlatelolco Commitment, which establishes a decade of action (2025–2035) for achieving substantive gender equality and the care society. In that agreement, countries recognize the proposal of the care society put forward by Latin America and the Caribbean as a new paradigm for sustainable development, equality, and peace—one that prioritizes the sustainability of life and the planet (paragraph 2)—and commit to promoting measures to overcome the sexual division of labor and move toward a fair social organization of care (paragraph 3). They also recognize the human right to care, which includes the right to provide care, to receive care, and to practice self-care, based on the principles of equality, universality, and social and gender co-responsibility (paragraph 4). The resolution also includes a range of specific commitments for its implementation, such as those related to legal frameworks; institutions; participation and strengthening of State capacities; financing and cooperation; and systems for information, communication, technology, monitoring, evaluation, and accountability.

At the 67th Meeting of the Presiding Officers of the Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean, held on 1 and 2 December 2025 in a hybrid format at ECLAC headquarters in Santiago, Chile, delegations exchanged views on the actions planned for the implementation of the Tlatelolco Commitment. The 2025 report of the Secretariat of the Regional Conference on Women in Latin America and the Caribbean was also presented, and an informative session was held on the CEDAW Committee’s General Recommendation No. 41 on gender stereotypes. In addition, a special regional consultation session took place in preparation for the 70th session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women, to be held from 9 to 19 March 2026 at United Nations Headquarters in New York, under the priority theme: "Ensuring and strengthening access to justice for all women and girls, including by promoting inclusive and equitable legal systems, eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices, and addressing structural barriers, among other issues".