Julio / Adobe Stock / Extended license
Setting aside the debate surrounding the legitimacy and popularity of President Nayib Bukele, he has a number of challenges ahead of him in the social, political, and economic sphere. In large part, these challenges are his legacy as they result from the decisions implemented in his first presidential term. Paradoxically, when it comes to overcoming the country's main problems, President Bukele is his own worst enemy.Read more +
Jorge Mejía Peralta / Flickr / CC BY 2.0 DEED
Democracy is under threat in Central America and authoritarianism is on the rise. This problem is having long-term institutional and economic implications for these countries and poses serious challenges for US policy towards the region. Uncheckered political ambitions and abuses of authority in the form of corruption or political and economic favoritism are signs of severe democratic backsliding. Nicaragua is an illustration of the consequences of unconstrained power. But the growing corruption and political ambitions of other Central American leaders could further affect democratic institutions in the region. It is important not only to bear witness but to mobilize proactive foreign policy to prevent authoritarianism from rising.Read more +
The following note by Manuel Orozco, director of the Migration, Remittances, and Development program at the Inter-American Dialogue, offers some observations pertaining to a migration and remittance outlook in 2024.Read more +
Jonathan Miranda/ Office of the Presidency of Ecuador
Ecuador's security crisis has surged to unprecedented levels, casting a chilling shadow across the nation. The distressing events on January 8 and 9 are a demonstration of a crisis that has worsened over the years, fueled by the clear neglect and failures of successive governments. Read more +
Jorge Mejía Peralta / Flickr / CC BY 2.0 DEED
Nicaragua's political changes in 2024 will depend on both the internal and external responses to the dictatorial radicalization, as well as to how the international community redefines its policy toward and relationship with the Ortega-Murillo regime.Read more +
Tamara Taraciuk Broner, Daniel Caballero
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Voces
EFE / Lenin Nolly via Infobae
In Latin America, the rise of so-called “outsiders” with anti-system or anti-establishment agendas has had significant consequences for the rule of law.Read more +
Servicio Nacional de Migración de Panamá / Twitter
This piece offers a look at the current migration trends and points to large differences that characterize this situation as a crisis: the scale, composition, nature, and management of migration is outside conventional or historical patterns. Aspects of this unprecedented migration pattern are not within the control of government authorities and policy makers. The recent migration wave to the US border has been referred to as a crisis. Media references point to the drama of people arriving and passing through the Darien, Central America, and Mexico to characterize the problem. Others have pointed out the increasing arrivals into US cities in numbers that are hard to manage by local communities.Read more +
Javier Gallego / Flickr / CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 DEED
When Bernardo Arévalo won a landslide victory in Guatemala’s runoff presidential election on Aug. 20, it was the first time in memory that people took to the streets to celebrate an election result. Against all early expectations, the 64-year-old sociologist, former diplomat and son of the country’s historically most revered…Read more +
