SMC Author

Ron Ahnen

SMC Affiliated Work

1

Author Role

Author

Status

Faculty

School

School of Liberal Arts

Department

Politics

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

8-2017

Publication / Conference / Sponsorship

Journal of Politics in Latin America

Description/Abstract

The success of microcredit lending programs depends in part on the regulatory framework that policymakers create to support them. A fact that many microcredit analyses often ignore or overlook is that this framework is shaped by both ideological and partisan political considerations of policymakers. In Argentina, the Peronist governments of Néstor and Cristina Kirchner launched and supported a state-centered microcredit program characterized by strict loan conditions and direct state grants for capital and operational costs to existing non-profit organizations that were largely supportive of Peronism. Provinces and municipalities governed by anti-Peronists refused to participate. As a result, the National Microcredit Program has come to mimic past patronage based policies to a significant extent, engendering dependency on government resources, and thereby threatening its long-term viability. This article explores the impact of the left’s ideological and political project on microcredit policy, implementation, and outcomes in Argentina.

Keywords

Microfinance -- Political aspects, Liberalism -- Economic aspects

Volume

9

Issue

2

First Page

41

Last Page

62

Disciplines

Political Science

Rights

Open Access journal

Original Citation

Ahnen, Ronald. “Leftist Politics and the Limits of Microcredit in Argentina.” 9(2), 41-62. Journal of Politics in Latin America. 2017. https://journals.sub.uni-hamburg.de/giga/jpla/article/view/1056

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