Aviso LatAm: October 30, 2022

​​​​​What you should know

  • Regional recovery: Of the 20 million people in Latin America who fell into pandemic-induced poverty, only 7 million have escaped it during the recovery.
  • Nicaragua: The United States announced new sanctions on its mining industry in response to continued repression, targeting its largest export, gold.
  • Brazil: Incumbent President Bolsonaro and former President Lula de Silva will face off in a second-round run-off election this Sunday. Join us Monday for post-election analysis.

Monitoring economic headwinds and tailwinds in the region

  • Brazil: The government nominated its former central bank director, Ilan Goldfajn, for the presidency of the Inter-American Development Bank. Also nominated is Alicia Bárcena, former head of ECLAC, by Mexico.  
  • Cuba: The United States granted $2 million in humanitarian assistance to assist in the country’s  recovery from Hurricane Ian last month. 
  • Ecuador: The government secured joint IDB-EU funding for an energy interconnection project with Peru, estimated to save $61 million annually through reduced fossil fuel use. 
  • Jamaica: The country welcomed a $300 million investment by Huawei in an effort to double down on its goal of digital transformation.
  • Peru: Ongoing political instability prompted a new negative rating for its credit outlook, attributed to cabinet reshuffling and impeachment attempts against President Pedro Castillo. 
  • ECLAC: This week, the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) redoubled its commitment to transform development models for productive regional transformation during its thirty-ninth session.

In focus: Transatlantic ties

A recent report highlights the potential for strengthening European investment and connections with LAC, focusing on three main pillars: digital connectivity, cybersecurity, and digital rights. Emphasizing the key opportunity of Spanish leadership through Spain’s upcoming presidency of the EU, the report also explores the potential of the EU-LAC Digital Alliance planned for 2023. 

At the same time, the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, attended the fourth EU Investment Forum in Montevideo this week. He used the opportunity to reaffirm European commitment to a free trade agreement with Mercosur.  

Health + Innovation

  • Ecuador: The latest country to drop all travel restrictions and return to pre-pandemic entry policies for foreigners.
  • Brazil: Brazilians paid tribute in São Paulo to COVID-19 victims. To date, Brazil has lost 680,000 lives to the pandemic.
  • Recovery: The World Bank granted Guatemala a recovery loan for healthcare and social services in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Geopolitics of vaccine donations: US vs. China

  • The United States outpaces China in its donations of COVID-19 vaccines to Latin America and the Caribbean, with Colombia and Mexico topping the list. The region has received roughly 52 percent of all US COVID-19 vaccine donations. To learn more, visit our COVID-19 vaccine tracker: Latin America and the Caribbean.