Chileans are in an uproar over a Cabinet minister being given an inflatable sex doll with a note saying "to stimulate the economy" taped over its mouth.

The furore erupted after photos of economy minister Luis Cespedes posing with the blow-up doll circulated on social media.

President Michelle Bachelet herself weighed in on Twitter, calling the joke gift misogynist and an affront to her government's goal of promoting respect for women.

"The fight for respect to all women has been an essential principle of my government. What happened at the Asexma dinner cannot be tolerated," the president said in the post.