Índice de libertad económica en los países andinos: estudio de caso periodo 2018-2022.

Abstract

The research focused on determining the evolution of the Index of Economic Freedom in the Andean countries during the period 2018-2022, using a quantitative approach and an analytical-synthetic method with data provided by The Heritage Foundation. The results revealed that Bolivia was the least economically free economy, facing structural challenges, while Colombia led the index with moderate stability in 2018, 2020, and 2021. Peru maintained a moderately free position with solid indicators, and Ecuador experienced improvements in monetary and judicial freedom, although it faced challenges in other aspects. The main economic policies supporting economic freedom were fiscal policies and trade agreements. Additionally, institutional factors influenced the political structure of governments, with state interventions and corruption hindering growth in the nations. Despite variations in economic freedom and economic growth, negative correlation coefficients were detected that do not support the existence of a direct relationship. Therefore, it is important to note that the limited duration of the analyzed period, comprising only five years, influenced the ability to establish significant correlations between the research variables in these nations.