Pedro Vuskovic
Encyclopedia
Pedro Vuskovic Bravo was a Chile
an economist of Croatian
descent, political figure, minister and author of the economic plan implemented by Salvador Allende
during his government.
, and obtained a degree in business administration from the Universidad de Chile. He became a professor of Statistics at the same university, while at the same time working for the CEPAL (United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean).
Vuskovic joined the ECLAC/FAO in 1950, shortly after its birth as an institution. For nearly 20 years he worked there, with his career in ECLAC culminating in the position of Director of the Development Division, where he played a role in structuring and disseminating the thinking of ECLAC. Concurrently, he served as a professor in ECLAC and ILPES training programmes while at the same time teaching classes at the schools of economics and sociology at the University of Chile and the School of Economics at the University of Concepción, finally becoming the Director of the Institute of Economics of the University of Chile.
He was the author of the economic platform of the Popular Unity (UP) campaign, and on November 3, 1970, he was named Minister of Economic Affairs by President Salvador Allende
. He became the key figure in the economic policy of the UP government, and tried to implement a massive redistribution of revenue (see Vuskovic plan
) by raising salaries and increasing public expenditure, through which he believed that the buying power of the population would increase and accordingly consumption in general.
He remained as a minister until June 17, 1972, when political pressure forced President Allende to halt his economic plans and replace him in the cabinet. Vuskovic then took over the cabinet-level position of Executive Vice President of the Production Development Corporation (CORFO
), where he served until September 1973. After the Chilean Coup of 1973, he was exiled to Mexico
.
There he became a professor, first at the Economic Research and Teaching Centre (CIDE), where he directed the Institute of Economic Studies of Latin America, and later at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in the Humanities at the National University of Mexico (UNAM), where he was named to the position of Coordinator for a programme on poverty and development options in various countries of Latin America.
After the return to democracy in 1990, he returned to Chile for a short while but moved back to Mexico where he lived his last years and died in 1993.
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an economist of Croatian
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
descent, political figure, minister and author of the economic plan implemented by Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende Gossens was a Chilean physician and politician who is generally considered the first democratically elected Marxist to become president of a country in Latin America....
during his government.
Life
Pedro Vuskovic was born in AntofagastaAntofagasta
Antofagasta is a port city in northern Chile, about north of Santiago. It is the capital of Antofagasta Province and Antofagasta Region. According to the 2002 census, the city has a population of 296,905...
, and obtained a degree in business administration from the Universidad de Chile. He became a professor of Statistics at the same university, while at the same time working for the CEPAL (United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean).
Vuskovic joined the ECLAC/FAO in 1950, shortly after its birth as an institution. For nearly 20 years he worked there, with his career in ECLAC culminating in the position of Director of the Development Division, where he played a role in structuring and disseminating the thinking of ECLAC. Concurrently, he served as a professor in ECLAC and ILPES training programmes while at the same time teaching classes at the schools of economics and sociology at the University of Chile and the School of Economics at the University of Concepción, finally becoming the Director of the Institute of Economics of the University of Chile.
He was the author of the economic platform of the Popular Unity (UP) campaign, and on November 3, 1970, he was named Minister of Economic Affairs by President Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende
Salvador Allende Gossens was a Chilean physician and politician who is generally considered the first democratically elected Marxist to become president of a country in Latin America....
. He became the key figure in the economic policy of the UP government, and tried to implement a massive redistribution of revenue (see Vuskovic plan
Vuskovic plan
The Vuskovic Plan was the basis for the economic policy of the Popular Unity government of Chilean President Salvador Allende. It was drafted by and named after his first Economics Minister Pedro Vuskovic, who had worked before with the CEPAL. Although good results were obtained in 1970,...
) by raising salaries and increasing public expenditure, through which he believed that the buying power of the population would increase and accordingly consumption in general.
He remained as a minister until June 17, 1972, when political pressure forced President Allende to halt his economic plans and replace him in the cabinet. Vuskovic then took over the cabinet-level position of Executive Vice President of the Production Development Corporation (CORFO
CORFO
Production Development Corporation is a Chilean governmental organization that was founded in 1939, by President Pedro Aguirre Cerda, to promote economic growth in Chile...
), where he served until September 1973. After the Chilean Coup of 1973, he was exiled to Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
.
There he became a professor, first at the Economic Research and Teaching Centre (CIDE), where he directed the Institute of Economic Studies of Latin America, and later at the Centre for Interdisciplinary Research in the Humanities at the National University of Mexico (UNAM), where he was named to the position of Coordinator for a programme on poverty and development options in various countries of Latin America.
After the return to democracy in 1990, he returned to Chile for a short while but moved back to Mexico where he lived his last years and died in 1993.
See also
- History of ChileHistory of ChileThe territory of Chile has been populated since at least 2,000 BC. By the 16th century, Spanish conquistadors began to subdue and colonize the region of present-day Chile, and the territory became a colony from 1540 to 1818, when it gained independence from Spain...
- Chile under AllendeChile under AllendeSalvador Allende was the president of Chile from 1970 until 1973, and head of the Popular Unity government; he was the first Marxist ever to be elected to the national presidency of a democracy...
- Salvador AllendeSalvador AllendeSalvador Allende Gossens was a Chilean physician and politician who is generally considered the first democratically elected Marxist to become president of a country in Latin America....
- Vuskovic planVuskovic planThe Vuskovic Plan was the basis for the economic policy of the Popular Unity government of Chilean President Salvador Allende. It was drafted by and named after his first Economics Minister Pedro Vuskovic, who had worked before with the CEPAL. Although good results were obtained in 1970,...