Sharpening Milei’s Chainsaw: Atlas Network Partners Spur Reform

It’s striking what’s happening in Argentina, but it’s no surprise.

For decades, Argentinians were forced to struggle under one of the world’s most unpredictable and unstable economies. But over the last year, a wave of free-market and liberty-inspired reforms have taken hold. Record-setting inflation is receding, the country has budget surpluses for the first time in over a decade, housing is plentiful and affordable, prices have stabilized, and economic and financial experts—perennially bearish on the country’s outlook—are now optimistic.

While remarkable, these victories are the predictable outcomes when free markets, economic liberty, and personal freedoms are allowed to flourish.

President Javier Milei’s election has been the catalyst for these reforms. But numerous Atlas Network partners have been laying the foundation for Argentina’s transformation for decades. The hope that permeates the country today is a result of that work.

For generations, Argentina was controlled by “Peronism,” a unique mix of statism and unionism ushered in by President Juan Perón post-World War II. In the early 1900s, Argentina was one of the world’s most free and prosperous countries. But decades of Peronist politicians, corruption, and failed leadership pushed it towards record poverty, hunger, joblessness, and the brink of hyperinflation.

A year of free-market reforms, however, have begun to turn the tide.

Arguably, the country’s most significant achievement has been bringing inflation under control. When Milei was elected, Argentina’s annual inflation rate was over 200%, it peaked at almost 300% in May 2024.

But thanks to necessary reforms, Argentinians finally have some stability back in their economy.

As the Associated Press explains, “One year ago, Argentine supermarkets were marking price increases on an almost daily basis and middle-class families tried to spend their rapidly depreciating pesos as quickly as they got them. […] On taking power, Milei slashed energy and transportation subsidies, laid off tens of thousands of government workers, froze public infrastructure projects and imposed [state workers] wage and pension freezes below inflation. [Because of those reforms], inflation slowed from a monthly rate of 25.5% in December 2023 to just 2.7% in October—its lowest level in three years.”

While these policies were implemented within months of the new administration, the Atlas Network partner organization Fundación Libertad y Progreso (LyP) worked for years to lay their foundation. LyP has regularly published its Policy Handbook to provide guidance for Argentine taxpayers, the media, and policymakers on ways to make the government affordable and the state prosperous. The handbook (now in its fifth edition) steadily moved the Overton Window on what inflation-reducing reforms were needed and more importantly “realistic.” Now, many of them are helping bring the country back from the brink of hyperinflation.

LyP also launched a campaign to engage low-income Argentinians struggling with job insecurity, high food prices, and limited access to quality education. They conducted surveys to better understand which issues most impacted these groups and produced engaging videos to show them the free-market solutions. All this empowered everyday Argentinians with ways to engage lawmakers and push reforms through Congress.

In addition to taming inflation, the new administration has dramatically downsized and optimized the government. Over the course of 2024, the administration slashed the number of government ministries from 21 down to 9 and closed over 200 government offices that were either duplicative or better suited for the private sector. These reforms all led to the country’s first budget surplus in over 10 years.

Burdens on everyday Argentinians have also been cut. A massive tax on imports called the PAIS tax was allowed to sunset (a rarity for any government), and food import laws were changed to make it easier and cheaper to import food.

Asociación Argentina de Contribuyentes (AAC) is another Atlas Network partner that’s been instrumental in reducing the government’s burden on taxpayers. Their efforts have received the support of Milei, who was an early backer of AAC’s strategies even before he took office. In addition to pushing for tax cuts, AAC helped prevent tax increases on healthcare, food, and education that were being pushed by Peronist politicians. AAC also united a multipartisan coalition to eliminate the monthly tax on credit card holders in Buenos Aires. This tax cut amounted to $300 million in annual savings for three million Argentinians and resulted in Asociación Argentina de Contribuyentes winning Atlas Network’s 2024 Latin America Liberty Award.

Finally, thanks to Fundación Libertad, a Rosario-based public policy institute and Atlas Network partner organization, many aspects of the country’s labor law (which can be notoriously complex and expensive) have finally been reformed.

For years, Argentina required all employers to register their workers as “employees,” even if a worker was on contract, part time, or temporary. While requirements like these might have offered some protections for workers, they also made it harder for businesses to hire and forced companies to hire people off the books. In the first quarter of 2024 alone, 37% of the Argentine workforce and 57% of workers aged 18–25 worked jobs that were off the books. And even though many businesses were forced to hire workers informally, employers who failed to register employees (even if those workers weren’t technically employees) were at risk of being fined, arrested, and even convicted.

But thanks to Fundación Libertad, employers now have more flexibility to work with contractors and freelancers without having to register them as “employees.” Employers won’t face possible prison time for failing to properly register actual employees. And labor costs such as required severance payments and the “probationary” period for new employees have all been lowered. By reducing both the number of regulations and the associated punishments for the remainder, these reforms have made it easier to build businesses and hire both formal employees and contractors, setting the stage for a growing economy.

For too long, owning a home, becoming an entrepreneur, or simply earning a reliable wage were fantasies for everyday Argentinians. Today, that’s changed.

Marcos Falcone, a project manager at Fundación Libertad, explains, “Milei has been able to balance the budget in a way no one thought possible, and we have seen the largest spending cuts in history that did not coincide with hyperinflation or a default.”

Or as Aldo Abram, executive director of LyP describes, “[The year] 2024 will be remembered as a historic turning point for Argentina.”

These reforms have not come without challenges and pains. Peronism spent decades wrecking Argentina, and that won’t be repaired in a year. Unemployment is still high and, despite the progress, so is inflation. And it’s been a struggle for the people who (because of Peronists’ false promises) have been sucked into reliance on government handouts and jobs.

But the future for Argentina is bright and real.

Argentina’s turnaround is just one of many examples of what can happen thanks to the work of Atlas Network’s partner organizations. The success of AAC, LyP, and Fundación Libertad has set an inspiring example for civil society leaders around the world who are dedicated to tackling the challenges of runaway inflation, excessive government spending, overregulation, and other anti-freedom policies and practices. By building connections between our partners, Atlas Network helps each of them become more effective, efficient, and ambitious than ever before, creating a freer and more prosperous world.