Paraguay’s Leader, a SIPA Alum, Sees Opportunities on World Stage

President Santiago Peña Palacios of Paraguay spoke about his recent election and his policy plans for the South American country in a September 22 visit to Columbia’s World Leaders Forum.

Peña, who was elected in late April and took office on August 15, is a 2003 graduate of SIPA’s MPA Program in Economic Policy Management. After completing his degree Peña returned to his home country to work for the Central Bank of Paraguay. He later joined the International Monetary Fund in Washington, returning to Paraguay when he was appointed to the board of the nation’s central bank. Peña was named as the country’s minister of finance in 2015, serving until 2017 and then working in the private sector until his successful presidential run.

In his remarks, Peña talked about the key issues he wants to tackle as he commences his presidency, the opportunities he sees for Paraguay on the world stage, and the importance of Paraguay’s history to his aspirations for the country.

He also touched on the importance of democracy both for the region and the wider world. Paraguay experienced 35 years of dictatorship from 1954 to 1989, and democracy for about the same period of time since. “It allows us to compare what democracy has done on top of dictatorship, and the results are astonishing. So we have a moral obligation,” said Peña. “Democracy is not the norm in any part of the world. But in the western world, it is the norm. And we can prove that democracy is a much better system.”

The group of people gathered in this university was just amazing.

— President Santiago Peña MPA-EPM ’03 of Paraguay

Peña sounded a note of optimism about his region. “I have no doubt that Latin America is the region of the world with the highest potential. With the highest — if we think about the challenges for the future food security, water access, and the youth that are emerging in Latin America, I have no doubt that we have absolutely everything to be the most dynamic region of the world.” 

Although Peña noted certain challenges, the new leader was optimistic about his country’s economic prospects, especially when it comes to exports. For example, he noted that Paraguay’s Itaipu Dam has “the largest hydroelectric [output] in the world — larger than the Three Gorges in China — that allows us to be the largest exporter of clean renewable energy in the world per capita.” 

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Peña also reminisced about his time studying at SIPA and its impact on him personally and professionally. He said he remained good friends with several classmates and notes that two of were in attendance. “The group of people gathered in this university was just amazing,” he said.

University President Minouche Shafik was on hand to welcome Peña; after his speech Peña joined SIPA Professor Maria Victoria Murillo, who directs Columbia’s Institute for Latin American Studies, for additional conversation.

“Dream big,” he told the students in the audience. “The world doesn't change if you stay on the sidelines. You need to be in the middle of the field. And there are risks, of course, when you are playing in the field. You are hit, sometimes you are hit hard. The ball moves very fast and you don't have a lot of time to think about [it]. But I think it's rewarding playing the game… I wanted to be a player. I wanted to be in the game…[and to] make things happen.”

Watch the complete event: