Speaker:
Martin Rama, Chief Economist for the Latin American and Caribbean region, World Bank
Discussants:
Partha Mukhopadhyay, Senior Fellow, Centre for Policy Research
The full talk will be streamed live on CPR’s Facebook page.
About the discussion:
During the first decade of this century, the Latin America & Caribbean region enjoyed remarkable economic growth accompanied by poverty reduction and a steady improvement in social indicators. However, once the commodity boom ended, the region returned to the sluggish growth of previous decades. During the bonanza years, public spending, social programs, and transfers expanded in several countries to a point that may be unsustainable today. A left-wing tide had swept the region when redistribution was affordable.
However, political reversals are now the norm. The social unrest of recent months show that processing these economic adjustments and political transitions is not easy, and policy approaches reflecting sound economics seem to get limited political support. With populism and neoliberalism challenged, the path to inclusive growth in the Latin America & Caribbean region looks increasingly uncertain. This talk will discuss the deep causes of the region’s poor performance, explore new avenues for economic reform, and reflect on the meaning of the recent wave of social unrest
About the Speaker:
Martín Rama is the Chief Economist for the Latin America and Caribbean region of the World Bank. From 2013 to 2018, he held the same position for the South Asia region, based in New Delhi. Previously he was the Director of the World Development Report (WDR) 2013 on Jobs. From 2002 to 2010, he was based in Hanoi, where he led the economic program of the World Bank in Vietnam. Prior to moving to operations, he spent ten years with the research department of the World Bank.
Martín Rama gained his degree in economics from the Universidad de la República (Uruguay) in 1981 and a PhD in macroeconomics from the Université de Paris I (France) in 1985. He is affiliated with several think tanks in developing countries. From 1990 to 2005, he was visiting professor at the graduate program in development economics at the Université de Paris I.
