MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Paraguayan President celebrates drop in unemployment

“In one year and 4 months of management we created in Paraguay 100,000 new jobs,” Peña underlined

Paraguayan President Santiago Peña Thursday celebrated the creation of over 96,000 new jobs since the start of his administration, according to a study from the National Institute of Statistics (INE) released in Asunción which showed a significant increase from the third quarter of 2023 to the fourth quarter of 2024, with major growth in commerce, restaurants, hotels, community services, and construction sectors.

Hence, unemployment dropped to its lowest level since 2017, at 4.6%, and there was an increase in private employment formalization, reaching 42.3%. Peña emphasized his commitment to continue creating jobs and improving the labor market.

“In one year and 4 months of management we created in Paraguay 100,000 new jobs, and I will not rest until we reach those 500,000,” said Peña. The employed population was 2,899,993 in the third quarter of 2023 and 2,996,550 in the last three months of last year.

The sectors with the highest growth were commerce, plus restaurants and hotels with over 51,000 new jobs created. Community, social, and personal services reported 25,000 new jobs and the Construction sector announced more than 19,000 new positions.

The INE report also reveals that 20,000 fewer people were unemployed compared to the previous quarter of 2024. In addition, the unemployment rate reached 4.6%, the lowest since 2017.

“These data confirm that the country continues on a path of growth in formal and quality employment. We continue working to consolidate a dynamic labor market with more opportunities for Paraguayans,” Labor Minister Mónica Recalde underlined.

The announcement helped Peña counterbalance a recent survey by Argentine pollsters CB Consultora showing him falling to sixth place among South American presidents. His image suffered due to a scandal involving a congressman, and his approval rating decreased by 3.6%, falling from third place in December to sixth place in the ranking of South American presidents.

On the other side, Chilean President Gabriel Boric Font's image went up 4.4% to stand fourth. President Luis Lacalle Pou of Uruguay remained in first place with a 51.5% positive image, followed by Argentina's Javier Milei, from Argentina, with 49.3%, and Ecuador's Daniel Noboa in third place with 46.7% approval.