Andrés Velasco - Project Syndicate

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Andrés Velasco

Writing for PS since 2001
96 commentaries
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Andrés Velasco, a former presidential candidate and finance minister of Chile, is Dean of the School of Public Policy at the London School of Economics and Political Science. He is the author of numerous books and papers on international economics and development, and has served on the faculty at Harvard, Columbia, and New York Universities.

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Argentina’s Recurring Nightmare
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Argentina’s Recurring Nightmare

Sep 27, 2019 Andrés Velasco laments the catastrophically disappointing denouement of President Mauricio Macri's liberal administration.

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Saving Venezuela
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Saving Venezuela

Aug 27, 2019 Andrés Velasco says that talks with the Maduro regime can succeed only if accompanied by severe international sanctions.

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Will Facebook’s Libra Turn into a Cancer?
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Will Facebook’s Libra Turn into a Cancer?

Jul 16, 2019 Andrés Velasco, et al. warn that the new cybercurrency could mean slow growth and financial instability for emerging economies.

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The Experts We Need
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The Experts We Need

Jun 19, 2019 Andrés Velasco says that academics and policy wonks nowadays face a problem familiar to politicians.

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Dirty Floating in Emerging Markets
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Dirty Floating in Emerging Markets

May 13, 2019 Andrés Velasco cites new research that supports market intervention by central banks to stabilize exchange rates.

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Why Economic Recovery Won’t Defeat Populism
Jan 26, 2018

Try the following exercise. In your comment, substitute Donald Trump for populism. It would read like this: You have to laugh when the election of Donald Trump is endlessly described or implied as being a negative event. It is simply a valid democratic outcome due to voters expressing a view. Criticise Trump and you criticise democracy. Now, would you agree?
- Steve Hurst Jan 26, 2018
  
  Andre, Trump is duly elected. I dont like what he is but many did and apparently still do. There is the opportunity to democratically get rid of him at the end of his term, or to reelect him. Trump when he does actually do something is doing what he said he would do, and thats what people voted for. Here in the UK we have Brexit which I voted against. I accept the majority here want Brexit and it is likely to happen. BTW on the popularity figures Trump is not likely to get reelected, but if things pick up in the US he could get reelected. It all comes down to consumer confidence
  - Martin Maldonado Jan 27, 2018
    
    In his book "The Future of Freedom," Fareed Zakaria makes the argument that democracy in itself cannot ensure freedom or positive civic outcomes. To accept populism as positive is to accept the worst failures of democratic regimes, which are rooted in deep institutional inequalities for basic needs. One cannot explain away a negative democratic outcome simply on the basis that it is an democratic outcome. This is circular logic.
    
    Rather, politics and policy have to be examined in conjunction. Where masses are dissatisfied, honest solutions should be developed. Populism is dishonest by default in portraying certain segments of people as the cause of political and economic problems. As such, true solutions are difficult to come across in populist governing agendas.
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Climate Leadership from Developing Countries
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Climate Leadership from Developing Countries

Lee White & Tanguy Gahouma explain how Gabon's forestry policies can serve as a model for other developing countries to follow.

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Trump’s Perfidious America
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Trump’s Perfidious America

Shlomo Ben-Ami says repeated US betrayal of allies and commitments is transforming geopolitics, from Asia to the Middle East.

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The IMF Should Take Over Libra
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The IMF Should Take Over Libra

Yanis Varoufakis

Brilliant ideas that would be catastrophic in the hands of buccaneering privateers should be pressed into public service. That way, we can benefit from their ingenuity without falling prey to their designs.

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Time to Bite the Bullet in Syria
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Time to Bite the Bullet in Syria

Carl Bildt

US President Donald Trump's impulsive decision to pull American troops out of northern Syria and allow Turkey to launch a military campaign against the Kurds there has proved utterly disastrous. But a crisis was already inevitable, given the realities on the ground and the absence of a coherent US or Western policy in Syria.

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What Next for the Bretton Woods Twins? PS OnPoint
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What Next for the Bretton Woods Twins?

Devesh Kapur traces the divergent paths of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank since their founding.

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The End of Sri Lankan Democracy?
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The End of Sri Lankan Democracy?

Brahma Chellaney sees trouble ahead if Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the current presidential frontrunner, wins next month's election.

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The High Price of Trump’s Great Betrayal
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The High Price of Trump’s Great Betrayal

Richard N. Haass itemizes the costs of the US president's decision to withdraw American troops from northern Syria.

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Improving Nutrition Can Save Lives – and the Planet
USAID Vanuatu

Improving Nutrition Can Save Lives – and the Planet

Venkatesh Mannar urges policymakers to link improvements in food systems and diets to other major development goals.

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