Chile's O’Higgins and Magallanes Regions Launch Employment Tables to Cut Unemployment

In the O’Higgins region, the government created the Mesa Pro Empleo, an inter‑agency body that brings together regional authorities and public services to accelerate public investment and generate jobs. The region’s unemployment rate stands at 10.2%. Officials highlighted the need to shorten bureaucratic procedures that can delay projects by four to six months. The plan includes faster execution of public works, gender‑focused hiring measures, and the use of a roughly 14 billion‑peso project fund to spur employment, with particular emphasis on the agricultural sector.

In the southern Magallanes region, a Mesa Regional por el Empleo was activated under the regional economic cabinet and tied to the national employment plan that targets 50,000 new jobs country‑wide. The regional goal is to create about 800 positions by December, supported by direct hiring subsidies covering roughly 50 % of the minimum wage for four months. With a regional unemployment rate of 6.5 %, the initiative will initially grant 257 subsidies, prioritize women for 30 % of new jobs, and coordinate ministries such as Public Works, Housing and the Economy to remove bottlenecks and speed up fiscal spending.