Changing demographics as a result of aging populations and the consequent need to reform pension systems will be among Latin America’s biggest challenges in the coming decades, Fernando Larraín, the director of the AFP Association of Chile, a private organization that includes all pension managers in the country, said April…
On April 4, the Inter-American Dialogue hosted its yearly event on remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean, “Remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean in 2018.” The event brought together a panel of experts for a discussion of 2018 remittance flows, the outlook for 2019, and issues influencing the marketplace.
Regulators and private companies will continue to play important roles in the development of Mexico’s energy resources despite President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s focus on strengthening state-owned companies and enhancing “energy sovereignty” by reducing dependence on energy imports from the United States. This was the key message from speakers at “La nueva política energética de México,” an Inter-American Dialogue event in Mexico City.
Each year, the Inter-American Dialogue analyzes remittances to the region, identifying areas of growth and new trends that are impacting how people send and receive money. Family remittances to Latin America and the Caribbean reached $85 billion in 2018, an important financial flow and a critical source of support for many households in the region.
In a wide-ranging panel about current events in energy, Lisa Viscidi commented on the shift in the US energy trade balance and its effects on foreign policy, Chinese financing for foreign energy projects, the importance of upgrading transmission lines for expanding renewable power generation, and how the Green New Deal attempts to reframe the discussion on climate change in the US.
Lisa Viscidi
Presentations ˙
˙ Bloomberg New Energy Finance
Venezuela’s longest-ever blackout, which began on March 7 and lasted until at least March 12 in most of the country, aggravated an already dire humanitarian situation. Lisa Viscidi presented to a special meeting of the OAS Permanent Council about how grave government mismanagement of the power sector debilitated Venezuela’s grid, making electricity rationing a routine and power failures commonplace.
Lisa Viscidi
Presentations ˙
˙ Organization of American States
El 22 de marzo el presidente Donald Trump se reunió en Mar-a-Lago con delegados de cinco naciones caribeñas. Uno de los motivos para la reunión era hablar sobre Venezuela. Lisa Viscidi habló con NTN24 sobre la dependencia de las naciones caribeñas del petróleo venezolano, que se les prestaba por muchos años como parte del programa Petrocaribe con tasas de interés bajas y periodos de repago largos, y la continua afinidad ideológica de algunos países con Venezuela.
Directora del Programa de Energía Lisa Viscidi habló con El Financiero TV sobre la grave condición de la industria energética en Venezuela, las medidas que serían necesarias para recuperarla y las barreras para lograrlo.
Argentina’s economic crisis and the fiscal belt-tightening it demands have led to gradual cuts to wholesale electricity and natural gas subsidies for consumers and a liberalization of energy prices over the course of Mauricio Macri’s administration. This has helped make Argentina more attractive as a destination for energy investment despite its economic tumult, said Argentine Secretary of Energy Gustavo Lopetegui at an event organized by the Inter-American Dialogue on March 14.
Central American economies continue to struggle with achieving higher rates of economic growth, of above 4%. The sluggish growth continues to limit the ability of these countries to achieve economic development and prevent emigration in the long term. Of particular relevance is the fact that these economies are highly dependent on a small number of economic activities, and remittances are a central, if not the most important, source of income.
On March 5, the Inter-American Dialogue presented its new book titled Unfulfilled Promises: Latin America Today. Ambassador Shannon and president Chinchilla praised the book for constructing a narrative about the highly diverse region, highlighting its main idiosyncrasies and analyzing where it might be headed in coming years.