Daniel Chavez Moran On Latin America's Decade for Growth

Daniel Chavez Moran notes this interesting blog post from Mauricio Cárdenas, Director of the Latin America Initiative at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C.:

“Historically, experts have often characterized Latin America as a region with poor economic features: hyperinflation, fiscal populism, and costly industrial policies rife with corruption are just a few examples. However, experts are beginning to change their tune. In fact, many analysts are referring to the 2010s as Latin America’s decade. Last year, The Economist ran a special report, where the magazine turned the hemispheric map upside-down under the label ‘Nobody’s Backyard,’ suggesting that the region had learned from its previous mistakes and is entering a brighter phase. Although predicting the future is always dangerous, especially in a place where so many booms have ended in severe crises, the argument that Latin America is entering a decade of considerable opportunity does have merit.”

Cárdenas offers three interconnected reasons to make this point: The changing demographics of Latin America, the economic growth of China as a trading partner, and trends in global savings and liquidity. 

And he continues: “Whether Latin America can seize the moment and take advantage of this extraordinary chance to speed-up prosperity is still an open question. What is certain though is that there is no time for complacency or self-gratification...If Latin American leaders focus on this task ahead, this will be a transformational decade indeed. Otherwise, it will simply be another cycle of high and unsustainable consumption, a wasted opportunity of which the region has seen plenty in the past.”

Helping to address and resolve the economic and social development challenges faced by the nations and people of Latin America is what Daniel Chavez Moran focuses his philanthropy on through the nonprofit Vidanta Foundation he founded in 2005. Read more here about Daniel Chavez Moran and how the Foundation supports the integration of Latin America with the rest of the world through the strengthening of democracy and economic opportunity.