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Corresponding Author:
Agata Breczko, Faculty of Political and Social Sciences (FCPyS) and National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)

Coauthors:
Sandra Kanety Zavaleta Hernández, Center of International Relations (CRI), Faculty of Political and Social Sciences (FCPyS) and National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)

The IMF's Return to Latin America: Build forward Better?

Volume 77 - Latin American Economies : Complex Past and Challenging Future - Part I, February 2024
(pp. 37-62)
JEL classification: F02; F34; P16
Keywords: IMF; Conditionality; Discourse; Text-Mining

Abstract

The International Monetary Fund (IMF), after over a decade of estrangement from several Latin American countries due to its socially costly interventions in the 1980s and 1990s, is now making a return under several lending modalities. This renewed engagement is occurring after the IMF's own internal transformation and rebranding. The critical question is whether the prescribed policies upon the IMF’s return will deviate from historical patterns. To address this, we undertake a comprehensive analysis, juxtaposing the Fund's specific conditions (praxis) with its broader policy recommendations (rhetoric) in recent interventions, and employing text mining analysis and a customized dictionary tailored to IMF technocratic discourse. Findings reveal a significant evolution in policy advice, introducing socially friendly approaches while retaining orthodox measures. This study contributes to the broader discussion on IMF continuity, highlighting nuanced shifts and potential inconsistencies between IMF discourse and practices.

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The IMF's Return to Latin America: Build forward Better?

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Institute for International Economics of the Genoa Chamber of Commerce

Institute for International Economics
of the Genoa Chamber of Commerce