The Countryside as an Engine for Argentina's Future.

Argentina has been fighting for the way to end the string of economic crises, characterized by record-high inflation, poverty and unemployment numbers and percentages, and start on a path of economic recovery, growth and development, where stability is the norm and not uncertainty and fear. But, to achieve growth a country must trade with the world, exchange goods with other countries and regions. And for that, Argentina must have what to offer to the worldwide market. And what the country can offer is its countryside, agricultural products.

Agriculture was the main activity upon which Argentina's economy was based upon. Starting during the late 19th century, in the 1880s, the southamerican country adopted the so-called "Agro-Export Model" (Modelo Agro-Exportador), which generated massive numbers of growth and development and attracted a massive wave of immigrants (mostly of European origin). This bonanza occurred until the world-wide economic crisis of the 1930s, and the role of the agricultural exports of Argentina got significantly reduced, harming the economy.

In the following decades since, agriculture has reduced its role,  but it is still the founding pillar of the national economy, allowing the country to receive foreign currency with which, for instance, invest in industrial production activities. But, the Argentinian countryside has recently faced the impacts of various crises as well as natural phenomena like wildfires, floods and droughts, significantly harming the production. All of this combined with governments that have ignored, mismanaged, or out-right attacked the agricultural sector through tax hikes, regulation and a lack of help towards producers in times of need.

If the country wants to protect its countryside, the heart of its economy, the government must implement policies to support the agricultural sector, especially in these difficult times for agricultural activity. The one that is talked about the most is pushing for 0%"retention" (which is a tax for exporting agricultural products), which would increase profitability, and incentivize investments, thus paving towards a growth of the sector, and with it growth for Argentina's economy as a whole. To achieve development and economic expansion, Argentina must take advantage of what it can offer the rest of the world,  in this case agricultural products, give it impulse, and with the flows of money (foreign currency like dollars, euros, pound sterling, among others) finance the other sectors of the economy, thus turning the development of one sector into development for the rest.

Milei's government has implemented economic measures in favor of agriculture, like reductions in the "retentions", which are steps in the right direction, but  there’s still a long way to go in terms of what the countryside, and  thus what Argentina's economic development, really require.