Being in the US it is sometimes hard to understand the dynamics of elections abroad. For example, it would be obvious to expect that given the impact of the global financial crisis worldwide, economic issues would be at the forefront of any presidential election this year.
In Colombia, however, economic issues are yet to be debated in depth by presidential candidates ahead of the election on May 30. CIPE ‘s long standing partner, the Foundation for Higher Education and Development (Fedesarrollo) is pushing hard to have a serious discussion on much needed economic reforms among presidential candidates. This is not an easy task in a region where charisma and ideology have often been the main guiding principles for electing public officials.
As Jorge Godoy Coy rightly argued in a post earlier this week, economic issues are at the forefront of Colombia’s challenges and Fedesarrollo is one of the only organizations that is pressing decision-makers to move beyond general discussions to actual policy debates.
Yesterday, Fedesarrollo organized the second in a three part series of presidential debates in the coastal city of Barranquilla. Three presidential candidates, including current front runner Juan Manuel Santos, and two vice presidential candidates participated.
The debate in Barranquilla focused on foreign trade, how to fix regional finances, and how to implement much needed reforms in the banking and microfinance sectors. During the event, the candidates talked about their economic initiatives in response to policy reform papers that were presented by Fedesarrollo. About 3,000 people attended the debate and another 16,000 viewed it online via live streaming on the website of El Heraldo. The event also received ample coverage in the national news media including an article in the leading newspaper El País.
Fedesarrollo’s push to have candidates come up with solutions to some of the most pressing economic problems in the country are already starting to pay off. Several of the policy recommendations that have been made by Fedesarrollo are starting to receive the endorsement of the leading presidential candidates.
For example, during the Barranquilla event all candidates agreed that a key priority should be getting rid of the financial transaction tax. This tax on all financial transactions needs to be urgently replaced because it makes it much harder for poor people to access the formal financial system.
Other recommendations by Fedesarrollo did not receive support by many candidates. For example, Fedesarrollo presented evidence on how the current legal cap on bank credit rates is also hurting poor people by denying them access capital. Poor people are forced to go outside the formal banking system to seek credit because banks are not willing to lend to them at the low rates that are mandated by law. While most candidates did not agree with making this change, the true value of having these discussions is to have candidates thinking about what key reforms need to be implemented.
Having candidates focus on real issues that are affecting people in Colombia, as opposed to running campaigns based on personality cults, is in and of itself a clear mark of progress.
Stay tuned for the final presidential debate that will take place on May 3 in Bogotá. This debate will be televised nationally and candidates will discuss some of the most pressing and controversial economic issues including: labor market reform and how to reform the tax system.
Published Date: April 16, 2010