Uruguay's president Jose Mujica said the latest world events show that Europe 'has lost clout' in global affairs, and has lost strength as 'peace mediator', and this role could be “much better performed by Latin America”.
The economies of Latin America and the Caribbean will expand by 3.2% in 2014, which is higher than the 2.6% for 2013, according to the latest report from the UN Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, launched on Wednesday in Santiago, Chile.
Despite a decade of economic growth, Latin America is the most insecure region in the world, and an increase in crime on the continent has led to “an epidemic of violence” that is affecting growth, according to a report released by the UN Development Program. One in three Latin Americans reported being a victim of a violent crime in 2012, with the majority of the attacks being mainly robberies.
Despite a strong economy attracting new international business and increasing the need for multilingual professionals in the workforce, Chile remains one of the countries with the lowest levels of competency in English among adults worldwide, according to a study released Friday.
Pope Francis ranks as the fourth most powerful person in the world and the most powerful Latin-American, according to Forbes’ annual Most Powerful in the World List which this year had Russian President Vladimir Putin ranked number one ahead of President Barack Obama and the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Xi Jinping, number three.
An outbreak of dengue fever across much of Latin America has killed 31 people since the start of the year and is showing no sign of relenting. Endemic in several countries there’s growing concern following the discovery of a very “aggressive” strain in Peru.
Argentina, Brazil, Bolivia and Venezuela are the countries which most reduced inequality and poverty during the last decade in Latinamerica, according to Alicia Bárcena, executive secretary from the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, Cepal.
Uruguayan president Jose Mujica called on the Mercosur summit for a quick incorporation of Venezuela as full member of the group and said it was time the rest of Latin America moved closer to the integration process.
Uruguay is South America’s leading democracy and ranks 21 internationally according to The Economist Intelligence Unit, which makes an annual evaluation of democratic conditions.
by Former Senior Research Fellow Nikolas Kozloff
As more and more documents become available from Wikileaks, the public has gotten a novel and close up view of U.S. diplomats and their operations abroad.