Latin America at Davos 2026: From building trust, to Venezuela and trade insights

Latin America and the Caribbean enter the coming decade with important strengths to navigate an increasingly complex landscape. Macroeconomic stability, abundant renewable energy and minerals critical to the energy transition are strengths, reinforced by expanding digital ecosystems and a private sector committed to partnering with governments to deliver investment and growth.

These advantages, however, coexist with a complex operating environment that is shaped by major-power rivalry and political fractures. There are also longstanding challenges around unlocking Latin America’s growth and productivity.

Policymakers, energy and geopolitical experts, and leaders from business and civil society debated the region's challenges and opportunities at the World Economic Forum’s Annual Meeting in Davos. Here are some of the top takeaways.

Geopolitical upheavals manifested clearly in Latin America in the wake of the US operation that removed Nicolas Maduro on 3 January. Venezuela's prospects surfaced repeatedly in discussions across several panels at Davos.

In the session "Venezuela: What Next?," panellists were doubtful that Washington's approach has yet translated into a credible pathway toward legitimate governance for a durable economic recovery. Ricardo Hausmann, founder and director of Harvard University’s Growth Lab and a former Venezuelan Minister of Planning, argued that what is being touted as "stability" is better understood as coercion – marked by ‘ongoing political imprisonment and sweeping limits on basic freedoms by the current Venezuelan leadership’.

He said that the interim authorities lack legitimacy to establish a credible, investable framework – and argued that without a restoration of rights, Venezuela cannot persuade its 8-million strong diaspora to return home and rebuild the economy.

Building on Hausmann's argument, Jeffry Frieden, professor of International and Public Affairs and Political Science at Columbia University, argued that foreign investment will only return if Venezuela delivers political stability. He noted that authoritarian regimes can sometimes provide predictability for market players but was sceptical about whether that would be enough to rebuild investors' long-term trust in Venezuela.

In the session "Rebuilding Trust in Latin America," Ecuador’s President Daniel Noboa highlighted that many Venezuelans living in Ecuador welcomed Maduro’s removal as a source of renewed hope — and a possible opening toward a democratic future. Meanwhile, Ilan Goldfajn, president of the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), was asked about how the institution could support Venezuela's economic recovery. "We are in the business of trying to improve the lives of people in the region," said Goldfajn, but cautioned it can only step in after certain practicalities are met —for example, approval by its 48-member board — and when there are clear conditions for the possibility of sustainable recovery.

Other sessions, however, highlighted Latin America's strengths to navigate a geopolitical landscape increasingly marked by US-China competition – a "new world disorder," reminded Juan Carlos Mora, CEO of Bancolombia, during the session "Breaking Latin America's Growth Ceiling." He said the best path for the region is likely not to align completely with one side or the other, but to benefit from both. Mora emphasised the role of the private sector in unlocking opportunities in areas such as infrastructure, provided the region's governments find a common ground to integrate and develop those opportunities at regional level.

During the same panel, policymakers from Mexico and Brazil offered two illustrative examples of industrial policies pursuing an agenda of growth and income distribution. Altagracia Gomez Sierra, Coordinator of the Regional Economic Development and Relocation Advisory Council of Mexico, described how the country stands to benefit from the current trend of nearshoring through "Plan Mexico," an ambitious vision for national development with 13 goals which include raising the country from the world's 12th to 10th economy, increasing investment to 28% of GDP by 2030, and reducing poverty and inequality.

Offering a complementary perspective, Esther Dweck, Minister of Management and Innovation in Public Services of Brazil, highlighted the country's return to growth after a decade of underperformance. She attributed this turnaround to a combination of policies, including macroeconomic reorganisation and fiscal reform, alongside the restoration of public investment and the strengthening of social programmes.

In parallel, Brazil officially joined the First Movers Coalition as its 15th Government Partner during the Annual Meeting. It was a milestone reflecting years of collaboration with the World Economic Forum on industry resilience activities and it achieved synergies with the Belem Declaration on Sustainable Procurement, adopted during COP30.

Dweck described the EU–Mercosur agreement as an opportunity to break with the US-China polarization, and highlighted shared opportunities in infrastructure, productivity and social policies if Mercosur's main trading partners, Brazil and Argentina, align their political priorities.

Although Latin American economies are performing unevenly in terms of growth, macroeconomic instability is no longer a concern across the region, as Peru’s Central Bank Governor Julio Velarde highlighted. Velarde underscored that countries have already demonstrated resilience through independent central banks and credible monetary frameworks that have endured political pressure. Latin America’s growth constraints today lie elsewhere: low levels of trust, fractured politics, regulatory uncertainties, and weak productivity. Addressing them will be central to breaking the region’s growth ceiling, said James Scriven, CEO of IDB Invest.

Argentina's president, Javier Milei, highlighted the fruits of reforming his country's economy during a Special Address. He emphasised the transition from negative growth to estimates above 4% for 2025, underpinned by fiscal discipline.

Latin American leaders participated in panels across the Annual Meeting, highlighting the region's strength in the new economy, particularly the continent's role in the energy transition. Having grown nearly 6% in 2025, Paraguay is benefitting from being one of the few countries to achieve nearly 100% renewable electricity, thanks to hydropower.

In a session addressing how to close funding gaps in the energy transition, President Santiago Peña said the country is now planning to unlock investments in solar and is partnering with neighbours Brazil and Argentina to build a gas pipeline to help meet increased energy demand driven by technology use. Paraguay wants to leverage its abundance of energy, its stable legal framework, and reliable geopolitical alliances "as a magnet" to attract investments and become a digital hub, added Peña. However, he cautioned that countries should be wary of the domestic repercussions regarding the impact of technology on energy prices – which will weigh more heavily on those social sectors less able to adapt.

Leaders emphasized that growth must be pursued within a broader framework of fairness and sustainability that spreads benefits across all sectors of society. Speaking in the session "How Can We Build Prosperity within Planetary Boundaries?," Alicia Bárcena Ibarra, secretary of Environment and Natural Resources of Mexico, said humanity needs to enter an "Age of Restoration". Stressing that "planetary boundaries are not negotiable", she argued that "restoration can be good business" and solutions can deliver benefits for climate, biodiversity and economic growth.

The Forum is working in collaboration with Latin American stakeholders to shape dialogue on public policies, outcomes and expanded opportunities in the region. Together with President José Raúl Mulino of Panamá, Børge Brende, President and CEO of the World Economic Forum, announced a Country Strategy Meeting to be held in Panama City in October 2026. It will bring together top public and private sector leaders to examine the country’s policies, priorities and opportunities as a key global trade hub.

In addition, a white paper by the World Economic Forum and McKinsey published during the Annual Meeting sheds light on the region’s AI competitiveness potential, showing how the Intelligent Age presents a strategic opportunity to boost regional productivity. The paper estimates that AI could lift productivity in Latin America by 1.9–2.3% annually but value capture remains limited. A regional AI Competitiveness Roadmap suggests key actions for measurable economic impact, while ensuring people-centric, sustainable development.

Latin American leaders who attended Davos ensured that these broad debates – from AI and geopolitics to insecurity and the effects of climate – were also connected to people. Noboa pointed to the issue of security which ranks among Latin Americans' highest concerns, describing an ongoing "war against narco-terrorism" in which criminal organizations have adapted rapidly to state institutions, making traditional responses increasingly ineffective. Addressing insecurity, he suggested, is inseparable from the broader task of building prosperity in the region.

Latin America's private sector, several participants argued, is committed to partnering with governments to deliver investment, build new sources of growth and create fairer societies. Speaking during the session "The Future of Inclusion," Luana Márquez García Osemela, Chief Sustainability Officer of iFood in Brazil emphasised that businesses must move beyond rhetoric and embed fairness into their operations.

Taken together, the discussions in Davos highlighted both the tectonic shifts shaping Latin America’s trajectory and the scale of the opportunities now emerging. Across the region, governments are responding to these transformations with ambitious industrial policies, new growth models and efforts to unlock productivity. The debates underscored that many crucial choices lie closer to home – in how governments, businesses and societies take in their own hands the task of translating Latin America’s assets into long-term, people-centred prosperity. A shared progress in the spirit of dialogue that defined Davos 2026.