The BCRA and CAF Award Prizes to Two Young Winners of the Contest “Ideas for the Future”

Santiago Rojas (CAF representative in Argentina), Mauro Alessandro (Economic Research Deputy General Manager, BCRA), Paula Luvini, contest winner, and Fabián Zampone (Superintendent of Financial and Foreign Exchange Institutions, BCRA).

October 9, 2019. October 9, 2019. Today, the BCRA and CAF (Development Bank of Latin America) awarded prizes to two young winners for best essay in the contest “Ideas for the Future”. Paula Luvini and María Josefina Mignone, who had submitted their essays on the efficiency of the financial sector and the quality of public policies, will compete for a local prize against university students from the 19 CAF country members.

The Awards ceremony took place at the BCRA, where the winners received a certificate of recognition by Santiago Rojas—CAF representative in Argentina—, Fabián Zampone—Superintendent of Financial and Foreign Exchange Institutions—, and Mauro Alessandro—Economic Research Deputy General Manager of the BCRA.

“The BCRA has awarded this prize together with other central banks in the region with the aim of encouraging the implementation of public policies based on the interaction between analysis and proof”, said Alessandro, and he added: “This initiative is in line with our actions, which seek to promote education, stimulate research work, and foster economic analysis”. In turn, the CAF representative highlighted the high level of participation and excellent quality of the essays submitted in Argentina.

Paula Luvini, 23 years of age, has recently graduated in Economics from Universidad de Buenos Aires. Her essay "The efficiency of the financial sector and its accurate design for the future" analyses the role of fintechs and the challenge of lowering intermediation costs of granting loans. “My essay explains how fintechs can help to make the system more efficient, for instance, by lowering intermediation costs”, says Paula. “I also suggest following legislation closely to ease people’s access to the financial system”.

In turn, María Josefina Mignone, graduate from Universidad Torcuato Di Tella, presents Guidelines to generate quality public policies in Latin America and the Caribbean, including recommendations to move towards more effective, efficient and transparent practices. The author goes over the challenges that lie in different aspects of public policies, such as design, assessment, technical teams, and budget. She claims that these aspects should be considered within the framework of minimum standards in order to favor integration and development in the region.

This CAF contest is aimed towards recognizing young talent in Latin America and promoting research works on future views about their countries, along with challenges and suggestions on how to face them.

“Upon the 50th CAF anniversary, the BCRA and CAF seek to encourage the exchange and discussion of ideas making the most of a wealth of young talent in our region to contribute towards sustainable development, integration and a better future”, highlighted Santiago Rojas, during the award ceremony.

The next event will take place in the framework of the CAF Conference in Quito (November 2019), where the local winners will compete against the 19 CAF country members.