Endemic to West and Central Africa, monkeypox has spread across the globe in recent months. In late May, Argentina confirmed Latin America’s first two cases, adding reason to the World Health Organization’s (WHO) decision to declare the virus a global health emergency on July 23. Cases of the virus have now been confirmed and/or suspected in several other countries in the hemisphere, including nearly all countries in South America (excluding only Guyana and Suriname). Despite the sudden spread of monkeypox, governments in the region have reportedly been slow to respond and develop dedicated policies to address the virus, as noted in a new Reuters profile on Mexico and Brazil’s responses. Alongside Peru, they are the top three countries in the region with the highest number of cases, with a total of just over 1,300 infections between the three countries (nearly 1,000 of which are in Brazil). 

As with COVID, there is concern that monkeypox vaccines will not be distributed quickly and equitably across the world, leaving Latin America and other regions in the Global South disproportionately impacted by the virus. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has also found that there is a “gap in scientific production on monkeypox in Latin America, compared to the world.” (Reuters, The Lancet, Reuters, Foreign Affairs, NIH, CDC)

Argentina

• “Convincing voters to support fiscal balance and market incentives becomes a Sisyphean task in which every individual must give ground,” writes Eduardo Levy Yeyati for Americas Quarterly. “But at the same time, everyone feels they have been treated unfairly and senses that now is the time to collect.” 
  
  
• Former president and current vice president Cristina Kirchner was formally accused by the state’s prosecution of having led an “illicit pyramid scheme” in the southern province of Santa Cruz to divert public funds for infrastructure projects, reports El País.

Brazil

• President Jair Bolsonaro’s third son, Eduardo, is the key to the president’s relationship with former US president Donald Trump and other conservative forces in the US, says FT.
  
  
• At the Latin America Risk Report, James Bosworth and Lucy Hale cover the fatal July 21 police raid in Rio’s Complexo do Alemão that left 18 dead. 

Chile

• Chile Constitutional Updates (August 1, 2022) details recent news in the country related to the upcoming plebiscite on September 4. 

Colombia

• High-risk individuals in Colombia—including journalists, labor and indigenous leaders, and rights activists—have been offered government-issued bulletproof vehicles in an effort to enforce their safety. These vehicles, however, come with GPS trackers, stoking additional fear in the individuals they are intended to be protecting. (AP News)

Cuba

• Despite the recent announcement by the Cuban government to allow private foreign investment, the country’s dire economic situation and lack of reliable infrastructure do not make it the most attractive option for American companies, opines Jerry Haar in The Hill.

Ecuador

• Banks in Luxembourg were told to freeze Ecuador’s assets after Perenco, an Anglo-French oil company, stated that it had not yet received any payment from Ecuador following a $391 million settlement. (Reuters, WTVB)

Guyana

• ExxonMobil continues its offshore oil and gas exploration in Guyana, advancing a project off the country’s coast with recent contracts. (Oil & Gas Journal)

Haiti

• 109 Haitian immigrants were repatriated on Sunday, causing the US Coast Guard to call for citizens to refrain from making the “dangerous journey.” (Jamaica Observer)

Honduras

• The Cochinos Cay island cluster off the Caribbean coast of Honduras is emblematic of policy that is good for tourists and wealthy business owners but detrimental to the livelihoods of locals, reports El Faro. 

Mexico

• According to Mexico’s Tourism Department, more than 10 million visitors came to the country in the first half of 2022, reaching pre-pandemic levels of travel, reports AP. The largest number of tourists came from the United States. 

Nicaragua

• Yesterday afternoon, Nicaraguan police forces surrounded a chapel and shut down 6 radio stations belonging to the Catholic Church, reportedly in response to anti-Ortega critiques from Bishop Rolando Álvarez. (El País, ABC)

Panama

• The country’s recent wave of protests have helped diminish trust in traditional parties and may lead to the rise of an outsider candidate in Panama’s 2024 presidential election, writes Cristina Guevara for Americas Quarterly.

St. Kitts & Nevis

• Following a motion of no confidence against Prime Minister Timothy Harris, St. Kitts & Nevis will hold general elections this Friday under the observation of the OAS’ Electoral Observation Mission. (The St. Kitts & Nevis Observer)
  
  
  Venezuela

Breaking with tradition from his predecessor, Nicolás Maduro is planning on selling stakes in Cantv and Banco de Venezuela, among others, through Venezuela’s stock exchange, according to Bloomberg.

Arianna Kohan y Jordi Amaral / Latin America Daily Briefing
http://latinamericadailybriefing.blogspot