Prof. Dr. Rubén Ascúa from Argentina gave a guest lecture on "Current economic issues from Latin America" in the IHRM master's program on December 4. The English-language lecture was integrated into the course "Integrated Management System and Corporate Success" by lecturer Eric A. Reynaud and took place at the invitation of the scientific director of the course, Prof. Dr. Ascúa. Course director Prof. Dr. Thomas A. Martin.
Prof. Ascua studied Business Administration and Economics in Argentina and the USA with a PhD in Economics from San Diego. Prof. Ascua is now a full professor of economics at the federal Universidad Nacional de Rafaela (UNRaf) in Santa Fe Province and a recognized expert in Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Prof. Martin and Ascua have known each other for a long time and have conducted several joint research projects and publications, including the international GESt study.
The city of Rafaela, with a population of 93,000, has high social and recreational value and is within a day's drive of the economic metropolitan region of Buenos Aires. The province of Santa Fe is located in northeastern Argentina and thus comparatively close to neighboring Brazil, Uruguay and Paraguay by Latin American standards of size.
In an integrating view of economic and business aspects, which was aligned with the lecture title, the speaker clarified the economic characteristics and clustering of the Latin American part of America to the students. Besides South America, the economic division still consists of Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean. Mexico, however, is often attributed to North America because of its free trade area with the United States.
He then went on to discuss macroeconomic factors and growth prospects for the coming years. In addition to Brazil and Mexico, which are primarily the focus of European companies, Argentina and Chile in particular are also relevant target markets for foreign direct investment. In Latin America, too, the People's Republic of China is gaining massive importance as a targeted investor and buyer of consumer goods, including beef.
Finally, the speaker presented some selected German companies that have production sites in Argentina, and are thus eligible for a practical study semester of Ludwigshafen students: VW, Mercedes-Benz, Mahle, Festo or thermofin. Prof. Ascua is happy to provide assistance in arranging a practical semester or a university stay in Argentina. The German-Argentinean Chamber of Commerce in Benos Aires also offers valuable information for a stay abroad in Argentina.
UNRAf is a young, fast-growing university that provides further information about its study programs at https://www.unraf.edu.ar/, also in English and German. The courses offered include business administration, business informatics and industrial engineering. Of particular interest to IPO and IHRM students for a semester away is the five-year bachelor's degree in "Work Relations," which is comparable in length to a European master's degree.
