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VELADERO MINE JUMP-STARTS DEVELOPMENTPerched high in the southern Andes Mountains of Argentinasits Barrick’s Veladero mine. The prolific gold and silver mine islocated some 375 kilometres northwest of the city of San Juan.Since construction of Veladero began in 2003, the mine hasfostered an economic revival of sorts. The province has seen anincrease in jobs and new investment, and a marked decline inthe poverty rate.The mine’s positive impact is documented in a recent study bythe Chilean consultancy firm Consultora Malthus. “Veladero hascreated a more stable and diversified economy in the provinceof San Juan,” the study noted. “Positive employment trends,sectoral activity and growth in local tax revenues are all clearsignals of Veladero’s direct and indirect impact.”LOCAL VALLENAR BUSINESSMAN ABDÓN BARAQUI IN HISSUPERMARKET IN ARGENTINA.SAN JUAN’S ECONOMIC OUTLOOK ON THE RISEBarrick’s construction of the Veladero mine came along at anideal time. At the start of the decade, Argentina’s economyfell into a devastating recession. The country’s gross domesticproduct plummeted from $269 billion in 2001 to $102 billion justone year later.Unemployment hit 21.5 per cent and direct foreign investment(DFI) slumped with the rest of the economy. Foreign companies,which had pumped $8 billion into Argentina annually from 1992to 1999, cut their spending to just under $1.7 billion by 2003.Largely dependent on agriculture, forestry and other primaryindustries, San Juan province suffered the effects of the recession,along with the rest of the country. Provincial unemploymenthovered at 16 per cent in 2001. Barrick began construction ofVeladero in 2003. That year, the company’s capital spendingprogram amounted to 36 per cent of total direct foreign investmentinto the country. The mine created nearly 1,000 direct jobs,supporting another 5,000 indirect jobs across the province. Jobopportunities and investment created by the mine helped bringthe provincial unemployment rate down to 6.9 per cent by 2008.26March 2011