scholarly journals The Latin American State

1990 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 61-74 ◽  
Author(s):  
Albert Fishlow

The role of the state in Latin American economic development is undergoing fundamental reconsideration. This essay focuses on the reasons underlying the new commitment to reduced state participation. In particular, I suggest that the impetus comes less from newfound ideological conviction in the virtues of the market than from ineffective macroeconomic policy in the 1980s. The principal problem confronted by the countries of the region is a fiscal shortfall, not massive inefficiency resulting from misallocation of resources. Latin America is not Eastern Europe, where reform translates into elimination of the monopoly of state ownership and the structure of central command. Latin American countries have adhered to market capitalism, but without experiencing its magical effects in recent years. It is the contest between the micro- and macroeconomic explanations that illuminates why surface agreement on a reduced state role conceals a continuing divergence of views within the region.

2009 ◽  
Vol 42 (04) ◽  
pp. 651-655 ◽  
Author(s):  
Evelyne Huber

Our symposium offers a variety of perspectives, such as on self-perpetuation of inequality in the international system, or on the consequences of inequality for economic growth or for social and political conflicts. This contribution discusses the determinants of domestic policy choices that affect inequality and the consequences of these policy choices. The empirical focus is on Latin American countries, which collectively are characterized by the highest regional levels of inequality in the world, but individually show considerable variation. Different analyses have emphasized different causes of income inequality and of the variation in inequality, such as historical structural roots in land distribution and natural-resource endowments, geography, ethnic divisions, the economic context, demographics, and state action or lack thereof. The role of the state has not received much systematic attention until rather recently, though, despite its essential role in the allocation of resources.


Author(s):  
Gabriel Kessler ◽  
Alejandra Otamendi

Independently of the varying national homicide indexes, the fear of crime affects all socio-political dimensions across Latin American countries and influences the agendas of political parties, security markets, and everyday life. This contribution presents an overview on the fear of crime and insecurity studies in the region, focusing on two main fields: fear of crime studies showcasing similarities and differences among Latin American countries in terms of the relationship between fear and victimization, gender, class, age, and community cohesion perceptions, and the socio-cultural dimension to this phenomenon, including media influences on the fear of delinquency, the role of the state, and the general climate of ontological insecurity.


1993 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-17
Author(s):  
Alice B. Lentz

Alice Lentz offers a brief view of the role of the Americas Fund for Independent Universities (AFIU) in relation to significant initiatives in various Latin American countries. In a region where the function and development of private higher education institutions is especially important, the focus of the AFIU's activities is on private universities' ability to provide trained business leaders with the skills necessary to meet the challenges of enterprise growth in these developing economies. She mentions in particular the strengthening of financing capabilities within the university, and the evolution of three-way partnerships among business corporations, AFIU, and universities in Latin America.


Author(s):  
Mariya Y Omelicheva ◽  
Lawrence P Markowitz

Abstract The post–Cold War environment has ushered in an era of threats from terrorism, organized crime, and their intersections giving rise to the growing literature on the so-called crime–terror nexus. This article takes stock of this literature, assesses its accomplishments and limitations, and considers ways to deepen it conceptually, theoretically, and empirically. To challenge assumptions informing the crime–terror studies and suggest avenues for future research, the article draws on ideas from the scholarship on political economies of violence. These insights are used to probe the (1) non-state actors that form the crime–terror nexus, (2) conditions under which the nexus is likely to emerge, and (3) varied effects of criminal–terrorist intersections. The article emphasizes the ties of criminal and terrorist groups to local politics, society, and economy, and relationships of competition, rather than cooperation, which often characterize these ties. The conditions under which these groups operate cannot be understood without considering the role of the state in criminal–terrorist constellations. The structure of resource economies influences both the preferences of terrorist groups for crime and the consequences of terrorist–criminal convergence, which are also mediated by state participation in crime.


Author(s):  
V. Stoika ◽  

Organization of the state regulation of tourism in Ukraine and opportunities for its improvement on the basis of learning from the experience of leading tourist countries in Europe is the purpose of the study. The notion and main purpose of the state regulation of tourist activities is substantiated. It is established that the history of the state regulation of tourism in Ukraine points to the frequent change and re-organization of its central body, which did not facilitate the development of tourism. Analysis of the role of the state in the organization and development of tourist activities in different countries of the world allowed determining four types of models of the state participation in regulation of tourism as a constituent element of economy of the mentioned countries: American, Budget-Forming, European and Mixed. Experience of leading tourist countries (France, Spain, Great Britain and Italy) convinces of the necessity for the efficient building-up of the state bodies responsible for the development of the mentioned branch. Efficient organization of tourism in a country and its state regulation, cooperation with non-governmental institutions, active promotion of the national tourist product, implementation of efficient promotion and PR activities and a developed tourist infrastructure facilitate interest in this country by the tourists and inflow of monetary resources.


2020 ◽  
pp. 40-50
Author(s):  
С.Г. Макарова ◽  
Е.И. Андрианова

Окончание. Начало в №5 за 2020 г. Вопрос о влиянии собственности государства в крупных российских компаниях на их структуру капитала остается открытым и пока не получил окончательного разрешения в литературе. Результаты работ, проведенных для российского рынка, свидетельствуют о значительной роли государственного участия в российских компаниях [5], а также о том, что российские компании с государственным участием имеют значительно более высокие значения долга в структуре капитала, чем частные [34]. В данной публикации для оценки роли государственного участия на структуру капитала российских компаний был проведен эмпирический анализ 139 публичных компаний за 2014-2018 гг. (выборка представлена государственными и частными компаниями), котирующихся на Московской бирже. В рамках проведенного исследования было выявлено, что отечественные публичные государственные компании при прочих равных условиях имеют более высокое значение долга в структуре капитала, чем частные. Кроме этого, компании с государственным участием имеют также более высокие значения коэффициента долгосрочных обязательств в сравнении с частными. Это подтверждает гипотезу о том, что деятельность государственных компаний связана с большими финансовыми рисками, чем частных, особенно в долгосрочной перспективе. В данной ситуации целесообразно ввести политику, направленную на повышение финансовой устойчивости государственных компаний, а именно, осуществлять деятельность по расширению производственных процессов за счет собственных средств и нераспределенной прибыли, а не за счет заемных средств. Также было получено положительное значимое влияние на структуру капитала компаний с государственным участием таких факторов, как размер компании, рентабельность продаж, рентабельность собственного капитала, было выявлено отрицательное влияние таких детерминант, как величина чистых активов, коэффициент оборачиваемости активов, отношение операционных расходов к EBITDA, рентабельность активов. The question of the influence of state ownership in Russian companies on their capital structure remains open for further discussion and the conclusion has not been drawn yet. The results of the work carried out for the Russian market indicate a significant role of state participation in Russian companies [4], as well as the fact that Russian companies with state participation have significantly higher values of debt in the capital structure than private ones [33]. In this publication, to assess the role of state participation in the capital structure of Russian companies, an empirical analysis of 139 public companies for 2014-2018 was carried out. (sample presented by state and private companies) listed on the Moscow Stock Exchange. n this study, it was revealed that domestic public state-owned companies, other things being equal, have a higher value of debt in the capital structure than private ones. In addition, companies with state participation also have higher values of the ratio of long-term liabilities in comparison with private ones. This confirms the hypothesis that the activities of state-owned companies are associated with greater financial risks than private ones, especially in the long term. In this situation, it is reasonable to introduce a policy aimed at increasing the financial stability of state-owned companies, namely, to carry out activities to expand production processes at the expense of their own funds and retained earnings, and not at the expense of borrowed funds. We also obtained a positive significant influence on the capital structure of companies with state participation of such factors as the size of the company, profitability of sales, return on equity, negative influence of such determinants as the value of net assets, the asset turnover ratio, the ratio of operating expenses to EBITDA, return on assets.


2018 ◽  
Vol 40 (5) ◽  
pp. 921-942 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel A. Baeza ◽  
Jorge A. Gonzalez ◽  
Yong Wang

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to study how job flexibility influences job satisfaction among Mexican professionals, and focus on the role of key socio-cultural moderators relevant to Mexican society. Design/methodology/approach The paper explore how this relationship may be more important for women, employees with dependents such as children and elder parents and younger generations of professionals (e.g. Millennials). Findings The authors find that job flexibility is positively related to job satisfaction. This relationship is stronger for employees without dependents, as well as for younger generations of professionals (e.g. Millennials). Surprisingly, the relationship between job flexibility and job satisfaction does not differ by gender. The findings explain why job flexibility is more conductive to job satisfaction for employees without dependents, who tend to belong to younger generations. Originality/value Overall, the findings present important implications for managing job flexibility in Mexico and other Latin American countries, particularly for younger professionals.


Author(s):  
Angel Belzunegui Eraso ◽  
David Dueñas Cid

In this chapter we focus on the growth of “new religions” and new religious movements in Latin America and attempt to find explanations for this growth. Although other explanations for the increase in religious plurality exist, we focus on the role of women in this development. The expansion of movements such as Pentecostalism is challenging the centrality of Catholicism in many Latin American countries. Basically, we therefore aim to answer the following question: Why has Pentecostalism grown so much in some Latin American countries while Catholicism has experienced a certain decline? One possible explanation for this is the role of women in this expansion, which has fostered greater social cohesion within families and communities. Pentecostalism has led to a certain empowerment of the women living in precarious conditions, affording them greater visibility and importance within their communities and giving them a role in the re-education of behaviours that are rooted in male domination.


Author(s):  
Nicola Miller

This chapter recounts the Latin American countries that welcomed foreign innovation and expertise for technically demanding infrastructure projects. It mentions how the American continent's first railways were built by Spanish American engineers under contract to the respective states, contrary to the common belief that British or US American companies always led the way. It also focuses on the visibility and intensity of public concern about the relationship between science and sovereignty in late nineteenth-century Latin America. The chapter reviews the overlooked history of resistance in Latin American countries on handing over infrastructure projects to private companies, especially if they were foreign owned. It disputes conceptions of the role of the state and provides further evidence for the argument that free-market liberals did not have their own way in nineteenth-century Latin America.


2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (3) ◽  
pp. 75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miguel Székely

This paper documents the recent trends in access and completion of higher education (HE) in 18 Latin American countries, and explores the relation with a series of context variables in order to verify different hypothesis about the changes observed. We find that access to HE among individuals in the working age population has risen in the region, while completion rates have fallen. Our cohort-level analysis shows that the recent expansion in HE enrollment has been mostly associated with the increase in Upper Secondary completion rates as opposed to an increase in the fraction of USE graduates who enroll in HE. Other factors associated with this expansion include economic growth and favorable labor market conditions. Nonetheless, the dominant role of “the pipeline” underscores the need to continue increasing USE completion in order to expand HE access. Since “the pipeline” effect will at some point exhaust its role driving HE expansion, our findings also underscore the need for policies that raise the enrollment of USE graduates.


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