Paraguay presidential candidate Santiago Peña spoke at the Georgetown Americas Institute, a center for research and dialogue on key issues facing Latin America, on Jan. 25 regarding his hopes and expectations for Paraguay’s development. 

Peña addressed the importance of the upcoming elections on Paraguay’s future and his plans for the country in an event titled “Paraguay’s Future in a Turbulent Continent.” Peña is the presidential candidate for the Colorado Party, a right-wing political party currently holding the presidency.

Peña, a politician and economist, worked previously in the International Monetary Fund and served as Paraguay’s finance minister.

Peña said he hopes to bring his broad experience in both the public and private sectors to bring Paraguay out of recent economic stagnation due to lower harvest rates of soybeans. 

“Like a table, I needed four legs to stand. So I have one academia, the second public policy, the third one politics. And I needed the fourth, which was the private sector,” Peña said at the event. “I spent the last five years, again, advocating the importance of sound public policy in general in a way to develop a country.” 

The Paraguayan public protested Peña’s Colorado Party in March 2021 due to concern over the government’s COVID-19 policies, as low vaccination rates, low funding and scarce medical supplies led to high infection rates and overwhelmed hospitals. Protestors demanded the resignation of President Mario Abdo Benítez and better handling of the COVID-19 pandemic. In response, security forces fired tear gas and rubber bullets at protestors.

Peña said the protests reflected Paraguayans’ optimistic hopes for a better government, rather than pessimism about the country’s future.

“We were concerned about what was happening in the region and the protest. And the reality is the protests were only stopped because of the pandemic,” Peña said. “It was very clear that Paraguayans, they have aspirations, they have dreams, but they are not angry.”

Although the COVID-19 policy protests ended in 2021, the Paraguayan health care system remains underfunded. Paraguayan health workers protested again in December 2022, demanding increased government support for medical facilities. 

Despite increasing quality of life in Paraguay, the country remains behind other Latin American states, according to Peña.

“Over the last 30 years, Paraguay has developed in some period of time. It was the country with the highest rate of growth, and a rapid improvement in social indicators,” Peña said. “But despite all that, when you take up the picture of Paraguay, it is still behind the rest of the countries in Latin America.”

Peña said that despite this lack of growth, Paraguay has untapped potential in its people’s desire for progress and young population.

“We have a window of opportunity with all the potential and basically with this democratic, the democratic bond, the young population that today is an asset,” Peña said. “In order to get further social progress, we need to include more stability, education and help.”

Peña said that if he’s elected, his government would capitalize on Paraguay’s resources and population to further develop the country. 

“75% of the population is under 40 years. So there is huge potential to develop, but all the things that we cannot control, the land, the water, the water regime in terms of rain and the population we are given now, the country needs to do the part that we can control, and this starts with the election,” Peña said. 

Peña also said one of his key administrative plans is to further the use of renewable energy in Paraguay in order to bolster innovation and the economy. Paraguay is one of the largest producers of renewable energy in South America, with 99.5% of its power coming from hydropower. 

“Paraguay is probably the only country in the world that has an excess amount of clean, renewable energy,” Peña said. “So if we replace the selling of electricity for the use of electricity, the potential for new technology, the installation of large data centers that will collect information that will generate an ecosystem for innovation, is huge.”

Paraguay’s renewable energy surplus could provide the vast amount of energy which data centers require to operate. The market research firm Arizton estimated in June 2022 that Paraguay will receive up to $400 million in data center investments by 2027.

Peña said he hopes to advance progress and uphold democracy in the country by listening to the demands of everyday Paraguayans.

“If you think that you know what the country needs, go out, talk to the people. If they give you the confidence, then you’re gonna be able to make change for the country,” Peña said. “If you want to maintain freedom, a democratic system, you need the people to choose that vision.”