Latin American countries have wide-ranging experiences with economic policies and macroeconomic outcomes. The social and economic consequences have at times been adverse and dramatic. The Monetary and Fiscal History of Latin America project has produced systematic evidence using comparable datasets from these varied historical experiences to help build a knowledge base for the … [Read more...] about Examining the Interplay of Monetary and Fiscal Policies in Latin America
Banks and the Global Financial Crisis 10 Years On: Lessons from Latin America and the Caribbean
On Sept. 15 2008, Lehman Brothers filed for bankruptcy heralding the most serious financial crisis since the Great Depression. A couple of years after, I was at a conference and a senior (European) official gave a presentation entitled The Global Financial Crisis, Lessons for Latin America. I asked whether there was a typo. Shouldn’t that be lessons from Latin America?, I … [Read more...] about Banks and the Global Financial Crisis 10 Years On: Lessons from Latin America and the Caribbean
To Boost Education, Latin America Needs to Spend More Efficiently
Over the last two decades, Latin America and the Caribbean has made huge efforts to improve education. Investment in the sector has grown from 3.6% to 5.3% of GDP; the percentage of adolescents who finish primary school has reached well over 90%, and results on PISA, the international exam that measures core competencies in mathematics, language and science, have improved … [Read more...] about To Boost Education, Latin America Needs to Spend More Efficiently
What Behavioral Economics Can Do for the G20
If you are reading this blog, you are most likely a person with limited rationality. If you doubt that, ask yourself, if you have ever over-snoozed your morning alarm or eaten beyond your point of hunger? Humans, as it turns out, often fail to act in their best self-interest. We fail to follow through on intended goals and undervalue, or discount, the importance of the future. … [Read more...] about What Behavioral Economics Can Do for the G20
Behavioral Economics: Making Our Roads Safer
While plane crashes get the most media attention, we are much more likely to be injured in or by a car. And, in Latin America, the cost is very high. During 2017, car accidents claimed an average of 12 people per 100,000 inhabitants, five times the rate in Norway, more than double the rate in France, and even higher than that in the United States where road safety has been a … [Read more...] about Behavioral Economics: Making Our Roads Safer