On the one hand, external control is becoming increasingly explicit: “we helped Milei win” (Donald Trump), “the unusual fleet of planes with the JP Morgan bosses,” and the presence of Tony Blair and Condoleezza Rice to define the role; on the other hand, some Argentinians are learning, and it is very likely that government officials who do not meet the most basic needs and aspirations of their communities will be subject to harsh criticism and will suffer the punishment vote, if we are still in time.

Many of the governors' errors, shortcomings, and mismanagement have gone unnoticed amid the widespread exposure of the country's serious crisis. A few, on the other hand, stand out in comparison to the mediocre and irresponsible national administration.

I will not elaborate on the weakness and dependence on the central government—which will only worsen with foreign intervention—that many provincial governments exhibit in terms of resource exploitation and utilization, industrial development, and their inability to market their production. If the provinces are not self-sustaining, they cannot be autonomous. This becomes evident when senators and representatives in Congress vote for laws from the National Executive Branch that stifle domestic consumption, increase the cost of basic goods and services, hinder industrial development, and eliminate investment in roads and connectivity. Provincial governments are prisoners of their dependence.

Once, while discussing mining projects, dams, and other infrastructure with the governor of a province in Northwest Argentina, I asked him why this clause was included in the bidding documents for food service providers. He replied that the workers needed to eat the best food. This was a grave error: first or second-tier brands, or store brands, are not different in quality or safety, because the Argentine Food Code and Decree 4238/68 on animal product inspection prohibit it. They are, at most, more well-known brands among the population due to corporate marketing strategies and market presence. In fact, lesser-known products that sell well are quickly bought up by large companies.

But this issue takes on a greater dimension in the development of less fortunate provinces, since the governor who demanded the provision of top-brand food products had practically no such products in his own province. As a result, enormous quantities of food had to be purchased from the provinces of Buenos Aires, Santa Fe, and Córdoba. In other words, all the economic resources generated in his province were being extracted, as if by a vacuum cleaner, to benefit the growth of other provinces with greater industrial and productive development. The same thing happens with the hypermarkets that supply these well-known brands and take the salaries of public and private employees away from the provinces.

There are even more serious cases; but I will mention one emblematic example: Tierra del Fuego. Its economy depends heavily on Law 19.640, which establishes a special tax and customs regime and provides tax exemptions—a law challenged by almost all the other provinces, even though it is fundamental from a population and strategic standpoint. Nevertheless, it has not managed to implement even a single fisheries transformation project, despite the great potential of its island and maritime territory.

Tierra del Fuego is the second-lowest-landing province in terms of fishery products. Its neighbor, Santa Cruz, lands approximately 115,000 tons of fish annually, while Tierra del Fuego only reaches 33,000 tons (29%). The Port of Mar del Plata is located at a similar distance to Río Grande and Ushuaia from the shrimp (Pleoticus muelleri) fishing grounds; however, Mar del Plata lands around 12,000 tons annually, while Tierra del Fuego lands not a single kilo.

The coastal provinces have maintained a relatively steady volume of annual landings; however, Tierra del Fuego Province saw its landings plummet from 94,333 tons annually in 2008 to 33,000 tons in 2024. In addition to adding the least value to exports, it has landed meager catches of Illex squid and Hubbsi hake, contrasting sharply with its neighbor Santa Cruz, which landed 56,000 tons of both species in 2024. Santa Cruz's exports, however, only reach approximately US$70 million, primarily derived from the export of some 3,000 tons of Patagonian toothfish, a high-value, low-value-added product. This is all despite tax advantages. And although the Newsan Group SA based in Ushuaia ranks first in Argentine fish exports, this is a result of the investments it has in Buenos Aires, Chubut and Santa Cruz where it catches, processes and exports the three main Argentine species: shrimp, hake hubssi and illex squid.

What is happening in Tierra del Fuego contrasts with the 250,000 tons of fish caught annually in the Malvina Islands, an invaded territory of Tierra del Fuego, without the Province having taken any action in this regard. 

The government of Tierra del Fuego only administers Isla Grande, a small territory within the total area of the Province, thus weakening not only provincial but also national sovereignty. This government seems unaware of this, despite Article 2 of Law 23.775 on the Provincialization of Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and the Atlantic Islands, which limits its powers: “… the new province is subject to treaties with foreign powers entered into by the federal government, for whose ratification it will not be necessary to consult the government.” While in our opinion this is unconstitutional, it hangs like a sword of Damocles.

The provincial government continues to act as a mere delegate of the central government, just as it did when the province was a National Territory. It is unacceptable that, despite having a large part of its jurisdiction occupied by British interests, it has been unable to eradicate the British-owned radar from Tolhuin; the British company Harbour Energy, which violates Law 26.659; the airline LATAM, which refuses to recognize provincial authority at an airport within its jurisdiction, and so on. This is a true continuation of the United Kingdom's invasion of Argentina. 

The results in Tierra del Fuego are a clear demonstration that the Governor is not attending to the needs of his population and, as we said, external and internal demands will grow because his jurisdiction is in dispute and the people have already understood this.   

Given the Milei government's "alignment" with the United States, which seems to be deepening with the appointment of Pablo Quirno as Foreign Minister—Quirno having posted on August 12, 2013: "What if we held the referendum they did in the Malvinas here? Would it have a different result?" (sic)—everything seems to indicate that a governor with a more intelligent, less tolerant, and broader perspective than just the Malvina Islands is needed.       

Dr. César Augusto Lerena

South Atlantic and Fisheries Expert – Former Secretary of State

cesarlerena.com.ar

Published in Perfil, on Tuesday, October 28, 2025.