Advancing inclusion

CHAPTER 13 | Inclusion and Public Policy

Social inclusion is a process aimed at actively promoting social, economic, and cultural equality. Inclusive public policies affect not only the results of public policy and the outcomes obtained by excluded groups, but also how these results and outcomes are achieved. Inclusive public policy changes the basic normative framework, the institutions that operationalize the basic norms, and the policies and programs that these institutions implement. Political leadership and an active civil society are essential drivers of this process.

CHAPTER 14 | The Inclusion Process in Motion in Latin America and the Caribbean

Progress towards inclusion in the region requires efforts both to comprehend the forces that create exclusion and to understand how the public policy process can significantly advance inclusion. Public policy knowledge and experience in regard to attacking exclusion is very limited, but elements of public policies and programs being implemented in the region today can help guide the needed rethinking of the problems and possibilities of inclusion processes. Ultimately, however, policy recommendations in this area must be the product of civic participation and democratic processes that are at the core of any set of national initiatives for inclusion.

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