Source: Yahoo Brasil - SP, 29/06/2009

Lack of confidence in government actions, dissatisfaction with foreign policy and little support for business activities. The complaints of Latin American businessmen about their governments seem to go beyond official speeches. This is shown by an unprecedented survey by the Spanish consultancy Llorente & Cuenca, carried out with 76 executives and politicians in seven countries in Latin America and Spain. Of those interviewed, 72% do not trust government actions and XNUMX% complain about the legal uncertainty in their countries.

In Brazil, where the interaction between businessmen and the government has intensified with the crisis, resulting in some of the countercyclical policies recently announced, the degree of dissatisfaction is similar to that of neighboring countries, such as Venezuela and Argentina. According to the survey, 84% of Brazilian businessmen do not trust government policies. And 96% believe they have little influence on economic policy making. "It is the same index as in Argentina, where the relationship between the private sector and the government is admittedly bad," says Thomas Traumann, director of LLorente & Cuenca and coordinator of the study in the country.

The lack of legal certainty for doing business in Brazil is one of the critical points of the government-business relationship. According to the survey, 85% of executives consider the security level of national laws to be bad, very bad or regular. Only in Mexico and Ecuador are there more complaints about the topic.

At the international level, the perception of public policies is also negative. Among respondents, 73% do not feel supported by the government's foreign policy.

Much of the bad mood of businessmen is due to the period of the research: between October last year and January, the height of the financial crisis. But the private sector's indisposition with politicians is also related to the government's weight in the economic activity of these countries. "In Latin America, it is the official policy that makes the country move," says Traumann. Therefore, the critical position before government initiatives.

EVOLUTION

For Júlio Sérgio Gomes de Almeida, executive director of the Institute of Studies for Industrial Development (Iedi), an entity that brings together 45 representatives of large national companies, the sentiment of the entrepreneurs heard in the survey reflects the maturation of the democratic system in the country.

“Today, we have a high degree of representation for various segments of society. Most of the government's decisions are the result of the clash, the discussion, so that hardly any group considers itself influential ”, says Almeida.

According to the representative, the relationship between the business community and the government has evolved in recent years. One component of this change is the creation, in 2003, of the Economic and Social Development Council (CDES), the Council, linked to the Presidency of the Republic.

The body gathers members of the government and civil society, with the aim of advising the president on policy making. “Conselhão was a breakthrough in dialogue.”

The vision is shared by the executive director of the National Confederation of Industry (CNI), José Augusto Fernandes. "The dialogue between government and the private sector has increased in the most diverse areas." According to him, among the Latin American countries, Brazil has, along with Chile, the most structured institutions, both in civil society and in business. “But the rest of the countries in the region have many governments hostile to the private sector, such as Ecuador, Venezuela and Bolivia.”

ADMIRATES

The Llorente & Cuenca survey also identified the most admired politicians and entrepreneurs among executives in Latin America and Spain. In Brazil, the most admired politician is the American President, Barack Obama, followed by ex-President Bill Clinton and the Frenchman Nicolas Sarkozy. Among the Latin American favorites, the Brazilian business community pointed out, before its own president, the Colombian Álvaro Uribe and the Chilean Michele Bachelet.

In other countries, such as Spain, Mexico, Colombia and Argentina, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva was appointed as the most admired political leader in Latin America, even before the presidents of those nations. Among all respondents, the region's most remembered government officials were Uribe, Lula and Bachelet. Internationally, the preference was with Obama, Sarkozy and, again, Uribe.

In business, the Brazilians indicated Bill Gates, from Microsoft, Emílio Botín, from Santander, and Steve Jobs, from Apple, as the international favorites. In Latin America, Vale's president, Roger Agnelli, is the second most admired, after Mexican Carlos Slim, from América Móvil. Emílio Azcárraga, from Televisa, is the third best rated among entrepreneurs in the country.

In the universe of the eight countries surveyed, Gates, Slim and Jobs were also remembered, in addition to José Sérgio Gabrielli, from Petrobras. The information is from the newspaper O Estado de S.Paulo.