WASHINGTON, USA – Ministers, senior policymakers, academics, and representatives of international organisations gathered in Montevideo during November 17–18 for the IMF–OECD high-level conference “Making Reforms Happen in Latin America” to examine how the region can accelerate inclusive and sustainable growth through credible institutions, modernised regulation, technological innovation, and politically feasible reform strategies.
Despite advances in strengthening macroeconomic stability and policy frameworks, Latin America’s growth remains low, constrained by weak productivity, high informality, and other structural bottlenecks. At the same time, shifting global forces offer new opportunities that require coherent, politically viable reforms supported by stronger institutional foundations. While needed reforms are well known, challenges often arise in how to make these happen—the key theme of the conference.
In a recorded message, IMF managing director Kristalina Georgieva underscored the need for perseverance in reform implementation, while that of the OECD secretary general, Mathias Cormann, highlighted key structural reform priorities, including reducing informality and increasing competition.
In the keynote address, Chile’s former minister of finance Andrés Velasco underscored that today’s reform challenges are primarily political. He argued that politics are shaped by identity bonds that generate trust in public institutions. Only when such trust exists are citizens willing to accept short-term costs in support of long-term reforms, helping build durable coalitions for reform.
Political-economy considerations featured prominently in the conference. Speakers emphasised the role of credible, long-term political cooperation in making reforms succeed. But institutional weaknesses often prevent societies from converting broad social demands into coherent and sustained policy action. Completing this perspective, it was highlighted that reform strategies should be aligned with a country’s political and administrative realities and should ensure capable institutions, clear rules, and a long-term strategic vision to turn innovation and structural transformation into durable growth.
Presenters across different sessions highlighted the risk of complacency, showing how periods of stability can delay needed reforms until vulnerabilities accumulate. They outlined priority areas for Latin America, including productivity, competition, digital readiness, labor markets, and taxation, emphasising that smarter and fairer policy design can advance both efficiency and inclusion.
Specifically, on labor markets, presenters underscored that informality, low productivity, gender gaps, and skills mismatches hold back inclusive growth, calling for reform packages that lower non-wage labor costs, expand basic protections, strengthen active labor policies, and improve skills alignment. Tax reform messages stressed the need for fairer, broader-based systems that reduce inefficient tax expenditures, strengthen administration, and simplify compliance, noting Brazil’s VAT reform as an example of how consensus and gradual implementation can make major changes feasible. The business dynamism discussion underscored that Latin America’s growth is held back by structural frictions, but reforms that modernise regulation, strengthen competition, and invest in technology and skills can unlock productivity and foster more inclusive growth.
The conference was an enriching opportunity to exchange views and learn from country experiences across the region and beyond. Senior policymakers from Estonia and Ireland shared their experience in successfully implementing reforms, underscoring the importance of political leadership, reform ownership, and institutional credibility.
The conference concluded with a high-level panel featuring Uruguay’s minister of economy and finance, Gabriel Oddone, and Paraguay’s minister of finance, Carlos Fernández Valdovinos, alongside senior representatives from international organisations and academia. The discussion underscored the need to move decisively from generating ideas and diagnosing problems to implementation, and to embed reforms within credible institutions capable of sustaining progress across political cycles. The IMF and OECD reaffirmed their commitment to supporting reforms that deliver stronger, more resilient, and more inclusive growth across Latin America.
