The governor of the Metropolitan Region of Santiago de Chile, Claudio Orrego, has defended the drive for urban development as a key instrument to combat inequalities in large cities, stressing that this approach requires "political courage and principles" to direct more resources toward the territories with the greatest needs.
He said this during his speech at the World in Progress (WIP) congress, organized by PRISA and held at the Palau de Congressos de Catalunya, in Barcelona, in a conversation with the consellera of Economy and Finance of the Generalitat, Alícia Romero.
Orrego emphasized that Santiago de Chile does not aspire to position itself on the international stage solely through lower costs and taxes, but rather through the creation of a "space where there is social cohesion, political stability, respect for the law and, above all, quality of life".
He pointed out that today an economy strongly linked to knowledge predominates and that the population, especially the youngest, prioritizes settling in a place "where it is attractive to live" beyond salary or tax pressure, which, in his view, opens a window of opportunity for cities.
CITIES WITH A GLOBAL VOCATION
"Today, cities that have a global vocation care as much about taxes as about infrastructure, about the digital as about culture, about the public space in which people live," he noted.
Along these same lines, he alluded to the housing challenge and defended that not only the volume of new developments matters, but also their quality. He added that to tackle this challenge "it requires a State that plans and a private sector that submits to certain basic rules of quality of life".
GOVERNANCE
Orrego insisted that large cities and metropolitan areas need a "complete" governance to address issues such as tourism management, climate change, or the innovation ecosystem, among other areas, something that, in his view, is unfeasible if addressed only municipality by municipality.
He indicated that Santiago faces a "tremendous challenge of governance and shared division" and warned about the problems of inefficiency generated by the difficulties of coordination between the different administrative levels.
TALENT ATTRACTION
Regarding talent attraction, he has pointed out that it is no longer a field where only States compete, but also the cities themselves, and has identified "four dimensions" essential for strengthening competitiveness: stability and the Rule of Law; physical and digital infrastructure; human capital and culture.
Regarding institutional stability, he has noted that "perhaps in Europe it is quite obvious and taken for granted," but has emphasized that it constitutes a highly valuable asset. On infrastructure, he has highlighted the public-private collaboration developed in Chile and progress in digitization, citing advances such as the expansion of 5G coverage.
In relation to human capital, he has highlighted the role of universities and research centers based in the city. Finally, he has underscored the relevance of culture: "We have a combination of geography with the Andes mountain range, of our wine and of our poets that has made many people come and come to live in Chile, to invest or to work precisely because of something that is more intangible," he has said.