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World Bank awards $950 million dollar loan to Argentina
The World Bank has approved a $950 million dollar loan to Argentina, which will go towards the country’s budget proposal and to provide support to vulnerable children and young people in the country. This loan is in addition to the world-record $5.6 billion loan that the country has recently agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and is set to “confront economic difficulties and reinforce social protection for its most vulnerable citizens.” The stipulation that much of the loan will be used to help vulnerable populations, especially those most affected by the government’s drastic austerity measures, will hopefully assuage negative […]Read more...
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10 Argentine eateries make Latin America’s 50 best restaurants list
Latin America’s 50 best restaurants were named on Tuesday Oct 30 in Bogota, Colombia. They were chosen by The World’s Best, and although gastronomic hub Peru managed to nab the top two spots with two Limeño restaurants, Argentina has 10 spots in the list. #6 Don Julio, Palermo, Buenos Aires A post shared by Don Julio (@donjulioparrilla) on Oct 18, 2018 at 1:40pm PDT The highest on the list for Argentine restaurants, Don Julio is a high-class restaurant serving what Argentina does best – steak. All of the beef comes from 100 percent grass-fed Aberdeen Angus, which, if you sit […]Read more...
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October 30, a historic day for Argentina’s democracy
Today, Oct. 30, is a historic day for Argentina, as it marks 35 years since the Argentine people voted for a return to democracy, giving Raúl Alfonsín the responsibility of president of the nation. This came after seven years of brutal military dictatorship that saw thousands of people killed or disappeared, reported Actualidad. A CONADEP study highlighted that the majority of the victims were young men and women under 30, often activists and social leaders who were trying to lead their country out of the violent era it had found itself in. Alfonsín was the leader of the Radical Civil […]Read more...
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IMF loan formally approved, final amount set at $56.3 billion
Today Friday Oct 26, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) formally approved the new Argentine loan terms with Argentina, which had been verbally set out in September. The new agreement will see a larger IMF investment than the original deal struck in May, and will also speed up the release of funds. Over the next few years, the IMF will loan Argentina over $50 billion US dollars. The initial agreement in May was for $50 billion dollars, and the September verbal agreement was for $57.1 billion dollars. After the meeting at IMF headquarters in Washington however, the final amount was set […]Read more...
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Global use of Argentine soybeans unknowingly promotes illegal deforestation
The Gran Chaco plains span across a vast swathe of South America, the lion’s share of which sits in Argentina as well as spilling over into Bolivia and Paraguay on the country’s north-western border. An incredibly diverse landscape, the area is home to around 3,400 plant species, 500 birds, 150 mammals and 220 reptiles and amphibian species. However, mass deforestation primarily caused by soybean production is putting the entire region at risk, and even making millions of people around the world inadvertent complices. Heightened global demand for the soybean, which is primarily used in agro-fuels and livestock feed, has caused […]Read more...
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After 18 hours of debate, the budget plan scrapes an approval
After a marathon session of debates that lasted 18 hours, Congress approved the proposed budget plan for 2019. With 138 votes in favour, 103 against and eight abstentions, Mauricio Macri’s government managed to just approve a measure that had experienced a huge amount of resistance from opposition parties. With a majority of votes, the legislation will now pass to the Senate where it will be discussed on either Nov. 14 or 21. The debates were meant to start at 11 on Wednesday Oct. 24, but they were delayed by half an hour as initially there were not enough MPs in […]Read more...
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Violence erupts both inside and outside Congress during budget debates
Violence has broken out both inside and outside Congress during the debates on the controversial 2019 budget, with MPs pushing and shouting as well as protesters throwing rocks. Outside Congress, reported Clarin, a group of hooded individuals attempted to knock down the barriers put in place whilst also throwing rocks and hitting public property with sticks. The police have responded with tear gas, rubber bullets and fire trucks in an attempt to disperse the attackers, and 27 individuals have been arrested thus far. Así se reprimía en las inmediaciones del Congreso mientras se discutía el Presupuesto. #Presupuesto2019 pic.twitter.com/fPgO2sY2N3 — […]Read more...
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Nobel Prize winners and international scientists send Macri a letter of protest against cuts
Just days before the beginning of the congressional debates on the 2019 Argentine budget, nearly 1,200 scientists (including 11 Nobel Prize winners) from around the world signed an open letter to President Mauricio Macri in opposition to the cuts made to Argentine scientific institutions. Due to the economic crisis, various sectors across the country have experienced significant cutbacks, and the sciences are not exempt from this. The Ministry of Science has recently been downgraded to a subsection within the Ministry of Education, which the letter highlights as having “a great negative symbolic burden, [and] reveals how little President Macri’s administration […]Read more...
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Applications now open for Buenos Aires Latin American Leadership Academy bootcamp
Latin American Leadership Academy (LALA) is an educational NGO on a mission to develop the a new generation of ethical and innovative leaders.The not-for-profit has now announced that applications are now open for their six bootcamps across Latin America. The week-long immersive bootcamps will be taking place between December of this year and February 2019 across Brazil, Colombia, Ecuador and Argentina. In Argentina, the English-speaking bootcamp will take place in Buenos Aires, from 10-16 of February of next year. Focused on leadership and social innovation, all six programs across Latin America bring together 30 promising students aged between 14-18 years old. They will […]Read more...
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After 12 years, IMF to reopen office in Argentina
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has decided to reopen a permanent Buenos Aires office in November of this year, after over 12 years of not having one, reported Infobae. Argentina’s previous IMF offices were closed down in 2006, following a single payment of roughly US $10 billion to the organisation made by ex-president Néstor Kirchner to cancel out an existing debt. At the time, the former president also accused the financial organisation of having caused “pain and injustice” by pressuring Argentina to apply “policies that harmed economic growth.” Since then, IMF officials have been working in Argentina’s Central Bank. […]Read more...
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IMF reduces predictions for Argentina, two years of recession ahead
Argentina’s economic crisis has forced the IMF to recalculate their previous predictions for the country’s economy, reveals a new World Economic Outlook (WEO) study, released Monday Oct 9. The study shows that the end to the economic recession is further away than previously predicted by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and this isn’t the first time the international organisation have lowered expectations. In June, the IMF lowered their 2 percent growth prediction for the economy to 0.4 percent. Now, however, they have admitted that the country will spend two years in recession. The study predicts that the Argentine economy will […]Read more...
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G7 declare full support of Argentina’s economic policy
The G7 group, made up of the most powerful countries in the world, stepped forward on Tuesday Oct. 2 in order to show their support for Argentina’s deal with the IMF and their decision to implement macroeconomic policies. The G7 group is formed of Canada, Germany, the US, France, Italy, Japan and the United Kingdom, and the European Union also has political representation. The countries constitute 64 percent of all global wealth, or $263 billion dollars. “We welcome the commitment of the Argentine authorities to implement macroeconomic policies and a reform agenda to stabilize the economy and promote growth, which […]Read more...
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New IMF agreement – $7.1 billion dollars are added to the total loan
At 17.30 on Wednesday Sept. 26, Argentine Finance Minister Nicolas Dujovne and IMF Director Christine Lagarde gave a much-awaited press conference explaining the changes negotiated to Argentina’s $50 billion dollar loan. Dujovne explained that the size of the loan will increase by $7.1 billion dollars, putting the overall amount at $57.1 billion. Clarin noted that the Central Bank (BCRA) had hoped for a higher figure, however, the government is happy as the handouts will also increase. “The total amount of the Stand By agreement has increased from $50 billion to $57.1 billion dollars, and at the same time the payments […]Read more...
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National Strike September 25: What is affected?
Tomorrow, Tuesday Sept. 25 will see a national strike paralyse the country. The strike has been organised by the General Confederation of Labour (CGT) in protest of the drastic austerity measures and President Mauricio Macri’s decision to take out a loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The strike will have a profound effect on the country with all transport services and infrastructure affected, reported Perfil. No colectivo buses, metro or long-distance buses will be functioning, and neither will banks nor the majority of airlines. Which groups are taking part in the strike? Camioneros Transporte (the colectivo buses of the […]Read more...
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Telam announces its partial return, trade unions declare it a “fake blog”
After nearly three months of inactivity following a drastic decision to fire 40% of the media outlet’s staff, news agency Telam announced on Sept. 19 that they were back, albeit partially. Telam employees and trade unions have been occupying the company’s Buenos Aires headquarters in protest of the mass job losses, but Telam have opened a new office at Tecnópolis from which many of Telam’s staff will resume their work. Comunicado del directorio La Agencia Télam vuelve a informar https://t.co/eMxhiHg7pq pic.twitter.com/zynfU3ey8z — Agencia Télam (@AgenciaTelam) 19 de septiembre de 2018 In a communique published on the Telam website, the director […]Read more...
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Ecuador and the US push for Argentina to dollarise its currency
Carlos Julio Emanuel, one of the men behind the dollarisation of Ecuador’s currency back in 2000, has advised Argentina to do the same in light of its growing economic woes. “When there is one sole currency there is no possibility of devaluation,” he said in a radio interview on the program De Caño Vale Doble. “Since the year 2000 in Ecuador, governments have not been able to use the money-printing machine in order to finance fiscal deficit. Today Ecuador has 0 percent inflation. We went from 100 percent in 2000 to 0 percent.” This comes as Argentina’s government admits for […]Read more...
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Guillermo Moreno writes to the IMF to stop early release of funds
Ex-Kirchner official Guillermo Moreno wrote a letter to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday Sept. 13 dissuading the group to acquiesce to Mauricio Macri’s request to have all remaining funds of the US$50 billion loan released at once. Moreno was the secretary of Domestic Trade from 2006 to 2013 during the Kirchner era, reported Clarin, and he wrote and signed the letter in his “nature as President of the Economic Commission of the Partido Justicialista (PJ).” The letter was published on Twitter by the Guillermo Moreno Puro Peronismo account, @NKGenIntermedia. Carta del licenciado Guillermo Moreno en su carácter de […]Read more...
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“We are drawn to what we don’t know”: Artist Jorge Alderete talks to Argentina Reports about his Easter Island obsession
Ten years ago, Jorge Alderete opened a book named Easter Island and its Mysteries by Steven Chauvet, and fell headfirst into an obsession with the enigmatic island that might never end. Easter island, or Rapanui as it’s known to the locals, is a small volcanic piece of land in the middle of the Pacific ocean, 3,686 kilometres away from the coast of Chile. It is famous for the impressive stone head sculptures (or Moais) that dot the land and whose bodies lie inexplicably buried in the volcanic earth. How did they get there? How did the communities who created them […]Read more...
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Ecommerce Report puts Latin America as one of the top regions for growth
The eCommerce foundation launched the Latin America eCommerce Report 2018 on Sept. 6 which highlighted the continent’s position as one of the top regions in the world for eCommerce growth. One of the reasons behind this growth is both the increased population and the higher rate of internet penetration across the continent, with an average of 59% of the population using the internet. Argentina is at the top of the leaderboard in this area, with 71% of Argentines connecting to the world wide web on a regular basis, followed by Chile, Uruguay and Costa Rica tying for second place with […]Read more...
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Outrage as Buenos Aires vice-mayor’s exorbitant expenses are released
As the government ruthlessly cuts spending and President Mauricio Macri admits “poverty will increase,” an official bulletin released on Tuesday revealed Buenos Aires vice-mayor Diego Santilli’s expenses from high-class sushi, pizza and grill restaurants. Within the first four months of 2018, Santilli claimed $148,712 pesos (nearly US$4000) in expenses. The most costly of these was a $24,865 peso (US $661) bill from steak restaurant La Brigada in San Telmo. This decadent steak night took place on the vice-mayor’s birthday, suggesting that government official was using tax-payer’s money to fund a personal celebration. However, the Buenos Aires government informed El Destape […]Read more...
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Macri accused of signing the IMF loan agreement illegally, investigation begins
President Mauricio Macri has been accused of abusing of power and violation of the post of a public official, following a court ruling from Judge Jorge Felipe Di Lello. A complaint against the president was made by ex-National MP for Buenos Aires Claudio Lozano and head of the Right to the City Organisation Jonatan Baldivieso, who accused the Argentine president of illegally signing the IMF loan before it had received authorisation from Congress. Di Lello decided to open the investigation against Macri, as well as the Head of the Cabinet Marcos Peña, the Economy Minister Nicolás Dujovne and the President […]Read more...
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Macri declares Argentina is in “an emergency,” and Dujovne explains drastic austerity measures
On Monday Sept. 3, after 48 hours of talks, Argentine President Mauricio Macri acknowledged the economic situation as an “emergency,” and gave a press conference explaining that the country will impose new austerity measures in order to eliminate the country’s fiscal deficit by the end of 2019. Macri announced that he had cut the ministries in his government by over half, although he didn’t mention which ones. The press conference was also the first time that the Argentine president has referred to the current economic climate as a “crisis,” whereas previous mentions referred to it as “a storm” or “a […]Read more...
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A hundred thousand protesters joined in the University March in Buenos Aires
Despite the relentless rain, 100,000 people took to the streets on Thursday evening to protest against the salary crisis and cuts to public education. University trade unions and student federations were joined by various opposition groups, human rights groups and science organisations, reported Clarin. The protesters met at the National Congress at 5 p.m. and moved towards Plaza de Mayo, holding placards as well as umbrellas. “Education is a right, not a business,” read one placard, with other proclaiming “Don’t touch public universities,” and “Why so afraid of educating the population?” Handkerchief sellers also made the most of this opportunity, […]Read more...
