Introduction to contemporary economics in Paraguay: agro-livestock production and economic elites

LÓPEZ, MAGDALENA

Revista Estudios Paraguayos

Centro de Estudios Antropológicos de la Universidad Católica Ntra. Sra. de la Asunción

Lugar: Asunción; Año: 2023 vol. 2 p. 294 - 316

0251-2483

This paper analyzes the forms of wealth reproduction and the concentration of wealth in Paraguay, strongly centered on the export of primary products, especially associated with soybean and cattle production in large-scale farms. It briefly reconstructs the political and state development that enables the wealth production environment, identifying the productive associations (gremios) that represent the interests of the most prolific sectors of the primary export economy. It also proposes a comparative look at poverty and inequality. The article compares the National Agricultural Censuses of 1991, 2008 and 2022, providing some analytical lines around land tenure, variation in the products and farm sizes. In addition, it analyzes data from the National Institute of Statistics to investigate monetary poverty and income inequality. Finally, it also draws on in-depth interviews with relevant actors within the associations.