When measuring corruption, the differences between two studies highlight that international perceptions of corruption do not always line up with on-the-ground experiences. While many may focus on the scandal-making headlines and business climate, surveys reveal the petty corruption afflicting the daily lives of citizens. They’re not the same.
This week’s snapshot looks at Latin America’s rankings in the recently released Global Competitiveness Index, produced by the World Economic Forum. While the so-called ALBA countries continue to occupy the bottom of the regional pile, the biggest surprise is Brazil, which sunk 18 places.
How tolerant are citizens across the Americas of LGBT political rights and marriage equality? While support for political rights is higher than support for the rights of LGBT couples to legally wed, the results track largely with levels of economic development in the region, with two notable exceptions.
Using ECLAC data, we constructed a graph tracing the past 20 years of exports from South America to China as a percentage of their total exports. In this light, it’s not surprising that those are the same four countries the Chinese premier visited last month.
Using the data provided by the Human Rights Watch Votes Count website, we took a look at how Latin American and a few other countries on the United Nations Human Rights Council voted on issues relating to Syria.
Predictably, the rates of financial inclusion are significantly higher across the region for those with a secondary education. But there is one country that counters that trend: Argentina. Why?
A snapshot of the World Bank’s data on financial inclusion in Latin America.
With only one university in the top 100, what does this say about the ability of Latin America to produce an educated workforce that can complete in today’s global economy?
