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Regional Survey: How Hot Is Buenos Aires?

On April 29, 2010, In competitiveness, foreign investment, by InvestBA
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Buenos Aires makes the Top 5 in new survey, but Brazil dominates with 3 of the Top 10 spots.

If Buenos Aires were a woman, how attractive is she compared to the other municipal babes in Latin America? It might sound like the premise for a really bad reality TV show, but it was actually the focus of a serious study on foreign investment undertaken by a Chilean consulting firm and the research arm of a major Colombian university. According to Portafolio.com, the Urban Investment Attractiveness Index  (UIAI) sought to measure the degree of attractiveness of cities across Latin America based on factors like a.) the ability to attract foreign investment, b.) the quality of climate for foreign investors, c.) the strength of local stock markets, and d.) the prospects for future growth. And while Buenos Aires wasn’t the first mina chosen by the bachelor, she wasn’t exactly voted off the island in the first round. (That was Venezuela.) In fact, BA came in a respectable fifth place overall in the UIAI survey of 48 cities. BA and fourth-placed Rio de Janeiro were credited with their status as “famous world cities and the strong presence of multinationals.” And Rio wasn’t the only Brazilian cidade feeling the love. In choosing the #1 city overall, the UIAI said São Paulo was the hottest woman at the rose ceremony. The praise, which probably sits as well with Argentines as Time’s selection of Lula today as the world’s most influential leader, was full of superlatives: “São Paulo combines the best conditions for foreign investment given the importance of the market, the climate for investors and the diversity of investment options.” Now that’s hot.

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Growth & HR Challenges for BA Tech Sector

On March 30, 2010, In competitiveness, foreign investment, technology, by InvestBA
Recruitment flyer for IBM Argentina; IT demand outweighs the supply of candidates in Buenos Aires.

Recruitment flyer for IBM Argentina; IT demand outweighs the supply of candidates in Buenos Aires.

Representatives of two of the biggest players in the Buenos Aires IT space made back-to-back appearances on the BA business radio program Efecto Mariposa (Butterfly Effect) today and shared valuable insight on the advantages and challenges to sustained sector growth in Argentina. IBM Argentina‘s Director of Marketing, Communications & Community Relations, Ignacio Vaca de Osma, said the English accent spoken here and the time zone overlap with the U.S. were two local advantages of doing business in BA. In terms of challenges, he emphasized the need to re-evaluate and accelerate the traditional Argentine six-year university programs. BA students would be much more inclined to choose an IT career if they could finish in three years and start working for a first-class company like IBM immediately upon graduation. Carlos Stella, Human Resources Director for Tata Consultancy Services in Latin America, agreed with the need for curriculum tweaking, emphasizing the need for intensive English language and cultural integration training, considering many local IT employees have supervisors in foreign countries. Tata currently has 240 employees working in the new Parque Patricios Tech District and plans to have 1,400 by year-end. Argentines make up roughly 90% of Tata’s current workforce with employees from India filling out the ranks. Both representatives felt greater emphasis needs to be placed on promoting IT careers if the country is going to keep pace with the global demand. As Vaca de Osma summed it up, “this is an historic opportunity to generate value-added services for the world.”

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Report Card: BA Government “Making Up For Lost Time”

On December 14, 2009, In arts & entertainment, competitiveness, culture, foreign investment, lifestyle, technology, visionaries, by InvestBA
All first graders in BA schools study English today; only 2 schools offered classes in 2001.

All first graders in BA schools study English today; only 2 schools offered such classes in 2001.

December is usually the time for making resolutions for the year ahead, but the Government of the City of Buenos Aires is looking back and celebrating the many achievements since December 2007 when conservative Mauricio Macri was elected Mayor. “In 2 years, we accomplished more than in the last 10,” declares the city’s microsite, “We’re making up for lost time.” The accomplishments are numerous and organized into eight broad categories including Health (20 new Health Centers, 35 new ambulances), Education & Culture (Broadband connectivity in 98% of schools, record attendance at Buenos Aires festivals), Economic Development (an emerging Technology District, the opening of an Investor Assistance Center for foreign investors), and Security (the new Metropolitan Police force, a state-of-the-art Urban Monitoring Center). Another noteworthy achievement is designed to prepare the next generation of porteños for a more competitive global environment: English as a Second Language is now being taught in all first grade classes in the City; second and third grades will be added in 2010 and 2011, respectively. The website is a shining example of transparency and accountability for a city government that has delivered on many 2007 campaign promises, is working today to improve the quality-of-life in Buenos Aires  and is preparing for Bicentennial celebrations in 2010. Hence, the new website’s tagline: Hicimos, Hacemos, Haremos (We Did It, We Are Doing It, We Will Do It).

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Subtes, Strikes & The “Anything Goes” Culture

On November 19, 2009, In competitiveness, foreign investment, by InvestBA
BA subway workers threw debris on the tracks to block service November 10.

BA subway workers threw debris on the tracks to block service November 10. (Source: Clarín)

One of the primary goals of InvestBA is to promote trade and investment opportunities in Buenos Aires, but in order to maintain credibility (and not come across as a Chamber of Commerce site), it’s important to highlight the occasional negatives as well. For that reason, “competitiveness” is one of the site’s main categories and these posts typically highlight the challenges Argentina faces in embracing economic transformation and competing on the global stage. Yesterday’s Brazilian article offered a laundry list of things that make BA great including a first-class subway system. Unfortunately, a Subte worker’s strike last week plunged the city into total chaos. The Miami Herald’s Andres Oppenheimer says the hidden costs of these strikes–440 so far this year–probably outweigh the millions of pesos in lost business. On a deeper level, the government’s willingness to let these strikes continue unabated is tantamount to embracing an “anything-goes” culture where chaos reigns and the political agendas of a few penalize millions of hard-working porteños. According to Oppenhemimer, Buenos Aires Mayor Maruicio Macri criticized the federal government at last month’s Americas Conference in Miami saying such protests and street closures only move Argentina “in the direction of an anarchic society, where there will be fewer investments and more poverty.” He added: “You often have just 10 people blocking traffic, and the police are protecting those 10 people instead of the hundreds of thousands who need to go to work. That’s ridiculous.” Indeed.

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U.K. Investor On Argentina & Competitiveness

On November 5, 2009, In competitiveness, foreign investment, by InvestBA
U.K. Trade Executive Director Andrew Cahn was in Argentina as part of a 3-country tour.

U.K. Trade Executive Director Andrew Cahn was in Argentina as part of a 3-country tour.

Fresh off a tour of Argentina, Chile and Paraguay, the director of the U.K.’s export promotion office, U.K. Trade Investments, sits down with La Nación and engages in a bit of British diplomacy in describing which foreign markets he finds most attractive. “China and India are absolutely critical in overall strategy,” says Andrew Cahn, “There are other emerging markets that are growing rapidly which offer more opportunities like Turkey, Vietnam and the United Arab Emirates.” When it comes to Latin America, the Q&A probably doesn’t come as a surprise to groups like IDEA regarding Argentina’s global competitiveness vis-à-vis other Mercosur countries. “The big elephants are Brazil and Mexico, and we put more resources there, because they offer more opportunities,” explains Cahn, ” and Chile is growing rapidly and gives investors confidence.” So where does that leave Argentina in the U.K. Trade equation? Well, 30 of the the U.K.’s Top 100 companies have Argentine offices, and there is significant British investment in mining, petroleum, gas, banking and pharmaceuticals. But Cahn says greater transparency and clear rules of the game are needed to put Argentina on the fast track to global competitiveness.

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