GTIPA’s Argentina Summit 2025, held at the ESEADE Institute in Buenos Aires, brought together local and international experts to discuss issues crucial to global economic development.
“We are very pleased to host a global event that brought together think tanks from around the world and demonstrated the great international interest in the economic, energy, and innovation opportunities that Argentina has to offer,” said Federico N. Fernández, president of Fundación Internacional Bases, a liberal think tank with 20 years of history in Argentina and the main organizer of the event.
Among the most notable panels, topics such as the rise of Argentine lithium, deregulation in the country, nuclear energy, and the challenges of international trade were addressed. Below is a summary of the most relevant interventions.
Deregulation
Federico Fernández, who is also CEO of We Are Innovation, moderated the deregulation panel, which was attended by Maximiliano Fariña, Deputy Minister of Deregulation. The official detailed the progress of deregulation policy in Argentina, highlighting the reduction of regulations and the simplification of bureaucratic processes. “Since December 2023, we have issued almost 350 regulations and modified or repealed 1,076, including the deepening of that process through the Basic Law and DNU 70/2023,” explained Fariña. However, the deputy minister also stressed that much remains to be done. “We have only completed 15 percent of the deregulation we have planned,” he added.
Fariña explained that the process is divided into three stages: verifying necessary regulations, reforming those that do not fulfill their function, and finally, digitizing the processes. “The most important thing is to understand that regulation is a monopoly, because users are bound by the rules established by the state. In a monopoly, citizens and businesses end up paying a much higher cost unfairly,” he concluded.
Nuclear Energy
For its part, the Nuclear Energy panel explored how the experience of this resource and technological ecosystems around the world, with Argentina as a key case study, are positioning themselves in a global context of high energy demand.
Federico Ramos Napoli, CEO of Dioxitek, offered a global perspective on the renaissance of nuclear energy. “Nuclear energy is undergoing a global renaissance, but it is very different from the boom of the past,” explained Ramos Napoli. According to the CEO, demand for nuclear energy is driven by increased global consumption, especially due to the impact of new technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI). “Regulatory bodies are not prepared to understand the nuclear renaissance that is taking place,” he said, highlighting the need for an appropriate regulatory framework to attract investment and ensure the growth of the industry.
International Trade: The Impact of U.S. Tariffs
The panel on International Trade, moderated by Sean Randolph, Senior Director, Bay Area Council Economic Institute, was another highlight of the event. Hubertus Bardt of the German Economic Institute addressed the effects of US tariffs on the global economy. Bardt noted, “We see a negative impact of one percentage point of GDP over the next four years as a result of the tariffs.” He also highlighted that two-thirds of the companies affected have chosen to pass these costs on to consumers.
Horacio Miguel Arana, Senior Researcher at Fundación Internacional Bases, pointed out that Argentina has great potential to play a strong role in global trade in the future. “We are a hyper-regulated country and we need to modify the pension system, reform labor laws, and implement a federal tax system. Despite this, we have 12 unicorns, 600 fintech companies, and a wide range of advances in agricultural technology that achieve high levels of profitability. If we stop worrying about what will happen in a month and start worrying about what will happen in 30 years, I think we will do much better,” said Arana.
From a European perspective, Jan Hagemejer (Poland), president of CASE, pointed out that although the direct effects of tariffs are not so severe for his country, there is an indirect impact through Germany and other EU countries. For his part, Iván Cachanosky, director of the Master’s in Economics and Political Science at ESEADE, highlighted Argentina’s vulnerability in the context of the global trade war, emphasizing the need for prior reforms to regain competitiveness.
“Today we are choosing the US as a strategic partner, but we must bear in mind that the world is evolving towards a model focused on services, not industrialization,” said Cachanosky. Finally, Marcelo Elizondo, professor at ITBA, emphasized the importance of multipolarity and openness for Argentina, considering that universal integration is being replaced by a model of “clubs of friends” that limits opportunities for growth.
Lithium: an Opportunity for Argentina
In a prominent business context, the event also featured a special panel on the future of lithium. “We have seven lithium projects in Argentina with substantial weight in regional economies, especially in the provinces where lithium is mined, where it represents between 40 percent and 80 percent of exports,” said Cecilia Domínguez, head of sustainability at CAEM.
At the same time, Eramet, the first French company to produce lithium on an industrial scale in Argentina, also celebrated the country’s progress in promoting a regulatory framework to encourage energy investments. “Within the Lithium Triangle, Argentina is the favorite destination for large investments due to its comparative advantages, as its regulatory framework is more modern than that of Chile, which has become somewhat restrictive in recent years, or that of Bolivia, which has some political problems. Therefore, Argentina is taking advantage of this opportunity,” said Manuel Giménez Zapiola, Eramet’s representative in Argentina.
Ignacio Celorrio, from Lithium Argentina, pointed out that the country is multiplying its installed capacity and lithium production, and that this development is very noticeable in the provinces. He also highlighted the implementation of the Incentive Regime for Large Investments (RIGI).
“It was an institutional instrument that provided a great deal of legal certainty and ended up being an improved version of previous laws that already encouraged mining production. Argentina must show long-term projection in order to favor the best possible conditions for promoting investment, mainly from abroad,” said Celorrio.
More Featured Panels
In addition to the panels mentioned above, GTIPA 2025 included presentations on key issues for global development. The panel on the “Latin American Subnational Innovation Competitiveness Index 2025” discussed the report that compares 182 regions in Latin America and the United States, evaluating indicators of knowledge economy, global integration, and innovation capacity. Speakers such as Carolina Agurto, Executive Director of Fundación Ideas, and Pablo Eguiguren, Director of Public Policy at Libertad y Desarrollo, offered perspectives on how these metrics are critical for policymakers and investors.
The need to adapt regulation to the innovation economy was also discussed, highlighting successful cases of regulatory reform in different countries. This panel was moderated by Stefano da Empoli, President of I-Com, and brought together experts such as Mario Ottero Cricco, Policy Fellow at ITIF, and Natalia González, Public Policy Advisor at Libertad y Desarrollo.
Another panel, entitled “Innovation in Life Sciences: Strategic Policies for Emerging Ecosystems,” discussed the policies needed to foster biomedical innovation in developing countries, with an emphasis on intellectual property protection and collaboration between academia and industry. Speakers such as Cairo Jennings, Intellectual Property Attaché for Mercosur, and Mónika Melo Guerrero, Vice-Rector for Research at the OMG Institute, highlighted the importance of balancing access to health technologies with incentives for research and development.
Finally, the panel on the “Fintech Revolution,” moderated by Martín Sarano, economist at the Fundación Internacional Bases, addressed how innovations in digital payments, cryptocurrencies, and digital banking are transforming the financial landscape, especially in markets such as Argentina, with contributions from experts such as Zoltan Cséfalvay, from the MCC Center for the Near Future of Technology, and Jorge Acosta, Head of Finance at Ualá, and explored the role of emerging technologies in financial inclusion.
GTIPA 2025 provided a fundamental space to reflect on the challenges and opportunities facing Argentina and the world in terms of innovation. The debates reflected the need for structural reforms and a focus on global competitiveness to meet the challenges of an increasingly interconnected and disruptive world.
ENDS
ABOUT FUNDACION INTERNACIONAL BASES
Fundación Internacional Bases is an institution that thinks globally and acts locally. Bases participates in the most important current discussions related to individual freedoms and the market economy. We do not seek to be just another voice, but rather to be an active part of real change that brings about the triumph of freedom, the transition to a society of responsible individuals, the opening up of the economy, and the reduction of the role of government in our lives. To this end, we actively cooperate with think tanks, individuals, educational institutions, people in the new media, and all those who want to achieve full freedom. For more information, visit https://fundacionbases.org.
ABOUT WE ARE INNOVATION
We Are Innovation is a dynamic network of individuals and institutions who deeply believe in innovation’s power to drive progress and solve the world’s most pressing problems. With over 50 think tanks, foundations, and NGOs based worldwide, We Are Innovation represents the diverse voices of a global civil society committed to advancing human creativity, adopting new technologies, and promoting innovative solutions. Through our collaborative approach and cutting-edge expertise, we are driving global transformative change. To learn more about our work, visit us at https://weareinnovation.global/.
