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handle is hein.crs/govbbng0001 and id is 1 raw text is: Congressional Research Service Updated October 24, 2019 Uruguay: An Overview Uruguay, a small nation of 3.5 million people, is located on the Atlantic coast of South America between Brazil and Argentina. The country stands out in Latin America for its strong democratic institutions; high per capita income; and low levels of corruption, poverty, and inequality. Due to its domestic success and commitment to international engagement, Uruguay plays a more influential role in global affairs than its size might suggest. Successive U.S. Administrations have sought to work with Uruguay to address political and security challenges in the Western Hemisphere and around the world. Political and Economic Situation Uruguay has a long democratic tradition but experienced 12 years of authoritarian rule following a 1973 coup. During the dictatorship, tens of thousands of Uruguayans were forced into political exile; 3,000-4,000 were imprisoned; and several hundred were killed or disappeared. The country restored civilian democratic governance in 1985, and analysts now consider Uruguay to be among the strongest democracies in the world. President Tabar6 Vfzquez of the center-left Broad Front was inaugurated to a five-year term in March 2015. This is his second term in office-he previously served as president from 2005 to 2010-and the third consecutive term in which the Broad Front holds the presidency and majorities in both houses of the Uruguayan General Assembly. Vfzquez's initial election ended 170 years of political domination by the National and Colorado parties. The Broad Front governments have maintained orthodox macroeconomic policies while gradually expanding social welfare programs, establishing a more progressive tax system, and implementing union-empowering labor laws. This policy mix, combined with a boom in international demand for Uruguay's agricultural commodity exports, has contributed to strong economic growth and considerable improvements in living standards. Uruguay is in the midst of the longest economic expansion in its history, with real gross domestic product (GDP) growth averaging 4.3% per year since 2005 according to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Government statistics indicate that the poverty rate, which had spiked during a 1999-2002 economic and financial crisis, fell from 39.9% in 2004 to 8.1% in 2018. Uruguay's middle class now encompasses 60% of the population, making it the largest in Latin America in relative terms according to the World Bank. The Broad Front also has enacted several far-reaching social policy reforms, some of which have been controversial domestically. The coalition has positioned Uruguay on the leading edge of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) rights in Latin America by allowing LGBT individuals to serve openly in the military, legalizing adoption and marriage for same-sex couples, and granting legal protections and rights to transgender people. Under the Broad Front, Uruguay also legalized abortion in the first trimester of pregnancy and become the first country in the world to legalize and regulate every aspect of the marijuana market, from production to consumption. Fifure I. Urufuay at a Glance Sources: CRS Graphics, Instituto Nacional de Estadistica de Uruguay, Pew Research Center, and the International Monetary Fund. President Vfzquez has spent much of his second term in office dealing with economic challenges. Uruguay's economic growth slowed to an annual average of 1.6% from 2015 to 2018, depressed by recessions in Argentina and Brazil-two of Uruguay's top trading partners and fellow members of the Common Market of the South (Mercosur) customs union. The economic slowdown has contributed to higher levels of unemployment, depressed revenue collection, and larger budget deficits. In an attempt to stabilize public-debt levels, the Vfzquez Administration enacted a fiscal adjustment that deferred some public spending and increased taxes on businesses and higher- income earners. At the same time, the government has sought to bolster economic growth by encouraging increased investment in infrastructure through public- private partnerships. Nevertheless, the IMF forecasts that economic growth will slow to 0.4% in 2019. Vfizquez has lost much of his popular support over the past four years. In September 2019, 37% of the population approved of his performance in office and 47% disapproved, according to the polling firm Cifra. Slow growth has contributed to a sense of economic stagnation, and the government's austerity measures have alienated Broad Front voters who expected Vfzquez to increase funding for education and other public services. Many Uruguayans also are alarmed by rising levels of crime and violence. The homicide rate has more than doubled since the Broad Front took power, rising from 5.7 per 100,000 residents in 2005 to 11.8 per 100,000 in 2018. congress.go

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