Following a decade-long oil and mining boom, Colombia is facing the challenge of how to harness its energy wealth and push development forward. Since former President Alvaro Uribe opened up Colombia’s oil and mining sectors in the early 2000s, Colombia has gone from producing just more than 500,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2002 to nearly 1 million bpd in 2012. Over the same period, it has seen foreign direct investment inflows jump from $2.1 billion to $15.8 billion, more than half of which was destined for the oil and mining sectors last year. Some 68 percent of Colombia’s $369 [...]
Argentine President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was discharged from the hospital this week after undergoing brain surgery to remove a blood clot. Prior to entering the hospital last week, the president had been actively campaigning for allies running in key midterm elections to be held later this month that will determine whether her party keeps control of Congress. The vote will also be seen as a test of where the parties stand ahead of the 2015 general elections. The president’s health is still being closely monitored, and she is unlikely to be able to return immediately to campaigning. Argentina has [...]
The August 2013 inauguration of new Paraguayan President Horacio Cartes provides a compelling opportunity to close the rift that opened among Mercosur members in 2012 in the aftermath of former Paraguayan President Fernando Lugo’s impeachment. The trade group suspended Paraguay at the time, and with Asuncion thus sidelined, the group then approved Venezuela’s accession, despite the Paraguayan legislature’s long-standing objections to Venezuelan membership. Brazil is now leading the charge to reintegrate Asuncion while keeping Caracas in the fold—and healing relations between the two. Nonetheless, despite Brazil’s well-earned reputation for diplomatic effectiveness, it won’t be an easy task. As a founding [...]
