L. America needs right choice amid turmoil

The vast majority of Latin American countries have surpassed two centuries of existence as republics. But no country in the region has developed to the level of being on par with developed nations.

The end of World War II in 1945 saw the reconfiguration of the world order in terms of political and international economic relations. In July 1944, just before World War II ended, the Bretton Woods Conference bequeathed the world two key institutions to help develop the global economy: the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. The year 1947 saw the creation of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (which was succeeded by the World Trade Organization in 1995). These fundamental institutions were promoted by the United States, supposedly the champion of freedom and free trade.

Simultaneously, illustrious economists such as Friedrich Hayek (Economics Nobel Prize winner in 1974) and Milton Friedman (Economics Nobel Prize winner in 1976) promoted the liberal theory, baptized as neoliberal or capitalist mode of production, in the West. However, socialist countries would follow their own path of development.