> Letters
to the Editor
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Your magazine’s assertion (‘Europe: None of the Above”) that the British are about to discover the true cost of extra-union existence fails to address the emotional dimension of Brexit. The June 23 vote was not so much about the EU as it was about the existentialist angst suffered by those who can no longer culturally identify with their surroundings. Put another way: immigration to an already densely-populated nation is deemed undesirable and voters want it stopped – or at least strictly controlled. As such, Brexit is not about economics or high finance. The remain campaign did not realise this simple fact and lost the vote by putting forth a narrative based on reason and logic. Those otherwise laudable faculties, however, do not come into play. GEOFFREY CARLYLE (Hull, UK) A nation that cannot ensure peace within its borders (“Can Nigeria Maintain Its Dominance as a West African Investment Hub?”) will find it hard to enticed moneyed foreigners to invest. Nigeria may be the largest economy in Africa, its GDP is on par with that of Thailand and smaller than those of Belgium, Poland, and Sweden – countries that all manage to maintain a degree of stability and, arguably in the case of Thailand, the rule of law – essential to any investor about to park some millions in a new jurisdiction. Nigeria, with its large young population, may hold great promise; so did Brazil and Argentina – and we all know where that went. Africa’s largest nation would be welladvised to put its house in order before counting on foreign direct investment as the driver of its economy. PIETER HOOYDONK (Pretoria, South Africa) I particularly enjoyed your profile of Wolfgang Schäuble (“Calling Liberalism to Order”), Germany’s muchmaligned finance minister. Rooted in pragmatism, Mr Schäuble’s thinking goes against the grain of the boundless optimism which guides economic policy in Anglophone nations such as the United States and Great Britain. By sticking to notions often described as “simplistic”, Mr Schäuble refuses to engage in voodoo economics or other fads. Uniquely, the man seriously argues that only hard work and relentless penny-pinching may lead to sustained prosperity. He has a point and Germany offers the living proof that backs it up. Elsewhere, alas, the unending search for shortcuts continues. FRANZ STOCKMANN (Linz, Austria) Please do not dismiss, out of hand, the progress made in Latin America (“Waiting to Seize Its Moment”) over the past decade or so. Whilst Argentina, Brazil, and Venezuela fare less well than most, countries such as Chile, Peru, Colombia, and Mexico have moved ahead quietly. With a new administration in place, Argentina is catching up as well. Though it is a mammoth task to unwind eons of administrative neglect and abuse, progress is being made. Most nations of Latin America are steadily moving up on the World Bank’s ease-of-doingbusiness index which should – in the fullness of time – attract more investors and build more competitive businesses. Even Brazil, now in the midst of a sharp downturn, offers hope as the country’s judiciary battles to institute the rule of law and tackles corruption. There is hope yet. OSVALDO d’ALBUQUERQUE (Campinas, Brazil)
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