In April, we celebrated the first anniversary of our blog Beyond Borders. Over the course of the year, we published more than 57 articles and the blog received more than 59,000 visits. We hope that this roundup of our most popular articles will motivate you to keep reading and telling us what you think about our posts so that we can make them increasingly relevant and interesting.
1. Regional Integration
The most popular article in this category was “Five Reasons Why Trade Agreements in Latin America and the Caribbean Matter.” In it, Joaquim Tres explained the benefits of trade for the region and debunked some of the myths that are often associated with trade agreements.
On the same topic, Antoni Estevadeordal and Mauricio Mesquita Moreira published “In Times of Uncertainty, More Regional Integration.” This article calls for integration in Latin America and the Caribbean through practical proposals to close the integration gaps that persist in the region, against an increasingly challenging global backdrop.
2. Technology and Innovation
Although the possibilities in the area of technology and innovation are endless, it is often hard to gauge the real impact they have on trade. The following articles shed light on this relationship:
For example, in “The Six New Technologies That Will Have the Greatest Impact on Trade,” Gustavo Beliz analyzed the impact of technological breakthroughs on production, trade, and integration. From robotics to genetics, technology is already playing an important role in how we produce and export goods.
A related article came from Jeremy Harris: “How Can We Understand the Complexity of Trade Data?” This looked at the features of INTrade, a platform that brings together complete data on trade agreements, detailed statistics on imports and exports, and indicators that measure the structure and performance of trade in Latin America and the Caribbean. This data is the basis for the Trade and Integration Monitor, a publication coordinated by Paolo Giordano which analyzes the current state of Latin America and the Caribbean’s integration into the global trading system.
Fabrizio Opertti asked “How Did a Paraguayan SME Manage to Break down Barriers and the Cost of Information to Offer a Top Product that Meets International Standards?” The article reveals how ConnectAmericas has become a technological tool that can connect SMEs with hundreds of companies around the world at no cost.
3. Gender and Trade
We are increasingly aware of how women have been excluded from different social spaces throughout history. Sadly, trade is no exception to the rule.
A popular article on this issue was “Women’s Leadership in Latin America and the Caribbean,” in which Camila Viegas-Lee explained how companies with women on their boards of directors achieve better financial results, which reveals the potential of involving more women in the labor market.
4. Trade Facilitation
In “Indirect Exports: A Simple Route to Internationalization for SMEs?”, Juan Blyde and Valeria Faggoni explore the reasons why most SMEs do not export as much as larger companies. The authors show how indirect exports could be an alternative way for SMEs to grow, although they warned that the main goal should be getting governments to increase their trade facilitation initiatives.
Jaime Granados published “Who Would Arrive First on a Trip between Mexico and Panama: A Marathon Runner or a Truck Driver?” , which looked at the logistical costs of trade in Central America and the ways in which governments can tackle these.
This reading list provides some good examples of where the region’s current priorities lie. Subscribe to our blog and send us your comments and ideas. We want to keep on publishing articles that you think are interesting and important for the region. Thank you for your support so far!
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