MODERNIZING THE STATE: PLAN AND AGENTS OF CHANGE IN THE CAMBIEMOS ERA, ARGENTINA, 2015-2019

Abstract

The article examines the creation and objectives of Argentina’s first Ministry of Modernization of the Nation (MMN). Soon after taking office at the end of 2015, President Macri positioned modernization of the state at the highest institutional level. The aim of this study is to understand the political nature of the efforts of Argentina’s Cambiemos alliance to modernize the state, looking at the content it gave to the modernizing task, the institutional functions and roles it built and the sociological profile of the officials who participated in the project. The article is divided into two sections: the first focuses on the ministry’s structure, resources and lines of action while the second examines the trajectories of its officials, using a database of 192 profiles that includes both the highest authorities and senior public management.