The Buenos Aires government, led by Jorge Macrihas begun 2024 with a measure that reinforces one of the flags of his administration: the state efficiency. The announcement of a $13 billion cut Through the reduction of political structures and the elimination of overlapping organizations, it marks a milestone within its administration and seeks to consolidate a austerity message. In a recent interview, the Buenos Aires chief of staff, Gabriel Sánchez Zinnydetailed the central axes of this strategy, which includes mergers, cuts and the redistribution of resources towards priority areas such as security, education and health.
Adjustments in the name of efficiency
“Today Jorge made a very important announcement: a saving of more than $13,000 million in organizations that fulfilled redundant functions,” said Sánchez Zinny. According to the chief of staff, this cut is not an isolated event, but part of a continuity started by Macri in December 2023, when reduced expenses by $30 billion upon taking office.
The adjustment contemplates the removal of 11 structuresmany linked to areas such as innovation, where the private sector, according to Sánchez Zinny, is already leading advances. In addition, special coordination units that duplicated the tasks of the ministries were terminated. “It is about putting the efficiency of the State under tension and asking ourselves how much we are really serving the citizens,” explained the official in dialogue with El Disparador (Delta 90.3).
Impact on public administration
The approach of this restructuring not only implies lower costs, but also a transformation of the link between the State and citizens. “Porteños have a lot of relationship with the State in procedures such as licenses, urban planning or opening of businesses. That is why we are working to simplify and optimize these processes,” said Sánchez Zinny.
“There are already 52 procedures that we went through in the Legislature last year, they are already fixed and they stop taking up people’s time and save people’s time in their relationship with the state,” added the chief of staff, who highlighted that The savings announced by Jorge Macri will be reinvested in critical areas, responding to the growing demand for public services due to the economic crisis.
This announcement is part of a discursive line that has permeated public opinion, especially after the 2023 national elections: “let politics pay for the adjustment.” According to the chief of staff, the reform also includes debates in the Legislature to guarantee the sustainability of the changes, as occurred with the law to simplify procedures approved last year.
A “smaller but better” state
Sánchez Zinny made a difference between the roles of the State at the national and local level. He assured that, while the first tends to regulate, the second is dedicated to providing services. “We want a State that guarantees that the subway works, that the highways are in good condition, that there is security and that the squares are clean. These are the demands of citizens, and that requires efficient administration,” he emphasized.
The destination of the released resources will be strategic: security, education and health are the priority areas. “The economic crisis makes the middle class resort more to public services. We need to reinforce hospitals and schools,” said Sánchez Zinny. The cutting of Jorge Macri It is not only an administrative gesture, but also a political one. In a context where the demand for austerity is central in public discourse, the president seeks position yourself as an efficient manager who leads with concrete decisions.
“You want the city to be clean, you want there to be security in the city, you want the subway to leave on time and arrive on time, so you can plan your day, you want the highways to be good, you want there to be order and no pickets in the street where security has to be, so there is also a lot of focus that Jorge has put on improving those services and that also requires a better state,” Sánchez Zinny concluded.
by RN
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