Latin America Intelligent Age

Historically, productivity in Latin America has trailed significantly behind global benchmarks. As Figure 2 shows, the region’s productivity growth has ranked among the slowest worldwide, averaging a 0.3% annual contraction over the past decade (2015 to 2024) and only 0.4% annual growth over the past 25 years (2000 to 2024).4 Contrary to the world economy, GDP growth in Latin America has been disproportionally driven by an expansion of the workforce, as illustrated in Figure 3. 1Latin America: a region poised for economic and productivity transformation Productivity in Latin America lags behind the global average. The region’s productivity growth has ranked among the slowest worldwide and is below the global average for the past two decadesFIGURE 2 Global average Global CAGR1 Latin America average Latin America CAGR17 2000 -3-101Labour productivity annual growth rate, % -4-2234 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 10 11 12 13 15 16 18 19 21 22 23 2024 14 09 20 Notes: 1. Compound annual growth rate (CAGR) Source: International Labour Organization. (2024). Output per worker (GDP constant 2021 international $ at PPP) -- ILO modelled estimates (Nov. 2024) [Data set]. https://ilostat.ilo.org/topics/labour-productivity/#elementor-toc__heading-anchor-1 Latin America in the Intelligent Age: A New Path for Growth 8