For all those who are part of the CISS family
This year has represented a pivotal moment for the renovation and reaffirmation of the commitments of the ICSS. We celebrated our 80th anniversary returning to on-site activities, which allowed for our statutory meetings to me held in the Conference’s headquarters. The meetings included our XXX General Assembly, which elected the authorities for the 2023-2025 term, and approved the reforms to the Bylaws and the ICSS Regulations regarding austerity, a more rational spending, transparency, acquisitions, among others. We were glad to once more exchange ideas and strengthen bonds between our different countries, as we have done for the past 80 years.
The Conference also grew this year, adding 11 new institutions to our membership; this is the largest number of new members added in one year in our history. Today our membership is made up of 87 institutions, the largest number to date. We welcomed three Mexican organizations: the Centro Nacional para la Capacitación Profesional y Liderazgo de las Empleadas del Hogar A.C., the Instituto de Seguridad Social de los Trabajadores del Estado de Chiapas, and the Instituto de Seguridad y Servicios Sociales de los Trabajadores del Estado de Nuevo León; from Costa Rica: the Sindicato Nacional de Médicos Especialistas; from Colombia: Positiva Compañía de Seguros S.A., and the Instituto Latinoamericano del Derecho del Trabajo y de la Seguridad Social; from Ecuador the Instituto de Seguridad Social de la Policía Nacional; from Guatemala the Asociación de Trabajadoras del Hogar a Domicilio y de Maquila, and from Peru, the Seguro Social de Salud. We are in the process of finilizing the affiliation of the Confederación Latinoamericana y del Caribe de las Trabajadoras del Hogar from Costa Rica, and the Dirección General de Jubilaciones y Pensiones, from Dominican Republic.
All the research done at the Conference increased this year and focused in responding to subjects and issues relevant to our Continent: universal access to social security; care work and care policies; risk management for socio-environmental disasters; actuarial practice for financially solid and sustainable social security systems; information systems for social security, and the promotion of a social security culture for young audiences, among other topics. As a result of this work, we celebrated 22 forums promoted by the General Secretariat and 20 more in collaboration with other organizations. At the same time, the Inter-American Center for Social Security Studies (CIESS) offered 46 academic activities, including courses, diplomas, and seminars. This is the largest program the CIESS has undertaken, and accounted for 2,971 students, another historic milestone. Regarding editorial production, we published 19 documents, available in or website.
Among the many events we held this year, two stand out due to the unprecedented size of their audiences: the 1st International Congress for the Updating of Patient Care for People Living with HIV for IMSS Personnel, which amounted for 3,000 enrollees, and the 2nd International Congress on Mental Health, which had 17,000 participants. Both events were organized by the IMSS and the ICSS, conveying the close bond between the two institutions and their common aim to move towards guaranteeing the right to social security without stigma and discrimination, and the importance of mental health, especially in the context of the post-pandemic world.
In all this work the ICSS reaffirms its principles and the goals stablished since its foundation, which make it a space for the confluence of ideas, projects, policies, and research. We aim to aid our members to share and exchange experiences, but also to gestate within our organization the implementation of better practices and more ambitious projects to benefit our region.
These past years, social security systems have been put to the test all around the globe and humanity has proved, once more, that the solidarity principles and the joint efforts behind social security are the right path. We would like to express our most sincere thanks for your participation in all these achievements.
Sincerely,
Alvaro Velarca Hernández
Secretary-General
Interamerican Conference on Social Security