Imagine an impoverished country, burdened by debt, with its young people emigrating due to lack of opportunities. I am not talking about present-day Guatemala, but about Ireland in the 1980s. Instead of continuing to spend what it did not have, Ireland changed course: it lowered taxes — including a record 12.5% corporate tax rate — cut unproductive spending, and committed to public savings. The transformation was led by governments with a shared vision: attract investment, organize public finances, and compete. Within a decade, it integrated into the European single market and went from having one of the largest budget imbalances in Europe to maintaining balanced accounts for more than ten years. Foreign investment multiplied, wages increased, and income per capita tripled.
Think of a young republic: without an empire, without a central bank, without oil or the IMF. And yet, between 1800 and 1893, the United States maintained fiscal balance in 69 of its first 100 years. In 1835, under Andrew Jackson, they achieved the unthinkable: completely eliminating public debt. How? They cut spending, sold land, and financed themselves through tariffs. That discipline allowed them to build canals, railroads, and expand toward the Pacific. Order precedes greatness.
In the mid-19th century, the United Kingdom emerged from the Napoleonic wars with gigantic debt: more than 250% of GDP. Instead of surrendering to spending, it chose to maintain budgetary control. For more than 70 years — between 1815 and 1880 — it reduced its liabilities and turned fiscal balance into the cornerstone of its power. Prime Minister William Gladstone argued that government saving was a moral duty, not merely an economic decision. Under his leadership, a clear rule was imposed: no spending without equivalent income. For him, financial order was freedom.
Without access to the sea or colonies, Switzerland chose stability. Since the 19th century, its federation of autonomous cantons operated with moderate taxes and a frugal administration. After the Second World War, the country maintained balanced accounts. Its formula: sustained saving, respect for private property, and a solid banking system. Today it has one of the highest average incomes on the planet, the highest in Europe after Norway… and without a single drop of oil.
In 1945, Germany was a country in ruins: devastated cities, industries turned into rubble, millions displaced, and a destroyed currency. But instead of financing reconstruction through debt or printing money, the young Federal Republic chose another path: order, rigor, and hard work. Under the leadership of Ludwig Erhard, price controls were eliminated, the currency was stabilized, and the economy was liberalized. Between 1950 and 1970, the government maintained a balanced budget, without massive subsidies or excessive social spending. Germany boosted its exports and forged one of the strongest middle classes in the world.
In 1965, Singapore separated from Malaysia with little more than humidity, poverty, and a half-functional port. Without natural resources, without democratic tradition, and without strategic allies, the new country chose a radical course: not spending more than it had. Under the leadership of Lee Kuan Yew, it maintained budgetary stability almost uninterruptedly for 59 years. Instead of squandering, it transformed national savings into investment and infrastructure. Today, it holds reserves exceeding 100% of GDP, one of the best educational systems in the world, and the second-highest per capita income in Asia.
In the 1980s, New Zealand was on the verge of collapse: a gigantic state, burdened by debt, subsidizing almost everything, and suffering from uncontrolled inflation. But in 1984, David Lange’s Labour government did the unthinkable: it dismantled the state apparatus, liberalized the economy, and committed to sound finances. In just a few years, they reduced the size of government, cut spending, eliminated subsidies, and began recording constant surpluses. The economy transformed: more investment, more employment, more freedom. Australia did the same, achieving high growth, contained debt, and quality of life.
The nations that have prospered did not do so by spending more, but by saving better. Fiscal balance is not destructive austerity. It is financial freedom, confidence for investment, and a solid foundation for creating sustainable wealth.
In 1993, Canada faced a fiscal abyss: its debt exceeded 70% of GDP, and interest payments consumed one-third of the budget. That year, Jean Chrétien implemented a drastic spending-cut program and simplified the tax system to restore balance. In just three years, Canada went from having one of the largest deficits in the developed world to achieving sustained surpluses. Unemployment and debt declined. It became one of the most admired reforms of recent decades.
In Spain, between 1996 and 2004, José María Aznar’s government applied a similar recipe: budgetary discipline, structural reforms, and a clear message to the world that Spain would be a reliable country for investment. Unemployment fell, growth exceeded 4%, and the country achieved positive fiscal results for the first time in decades. Aznar summarized it this way: “honesty and fiscal balance are basic conditions for a country’s progress.”
For decades, the Nordic countries were the example of the welfare state. But that model collapsed around 1990. In Sweden, public spending reached 70% of GDP and the deficit exceeded 10%. In Finland, the fall of the USSR caused a devastating recession. In Norway and Denmark, accumulated imbalances and inflation threatened to devour their economies. The welfare state, as it was known, had become unsustainable.
Then, they decided to reform the model. In Sweden, Göran Persson led an exemplary consolidation in 1996: he reduced spending, imposed balanced-budget rules, and transformed saving into a constitutional mandate. Denmark and Finland followed the same path, combining fiscal responsibility with pro-market reforms. Norway created its sovereign wealth fund with disciplined saving from oil revenues. Today, all four countries have balanced accounts or minimal deficits, high investment in human capital, and an enviable quality of life.
In 2023, Argentina appeared to be on the brink of collapse: monthly inflation of 20%, chronic deficits, and nearly half the country living in poverty. Javier Milei eliminated the primary deficit in just six months. He implemented drastic spending cuts, removed subsidies, and liberalized key markets. The results have been surprising: inflation fell by more than 60%, the exchange rate stabilized, the surplus reappeared, and GDP has grown since the second half of 2024. Today, an increase in average income above 5% is projected.
In the north, the United States, under Donald Trump’s administration, achieved a milestone in June 2025: recording the first monthly federal surplus in more than two decades. It did so by combining spending cuts, repatriation of capital, and customs tariffs that increased revenues without raising domestic taxes. It is still too early to measure the full impact, but the message is clear: fiscal order has returned to the center of the global debate.
Meanwhile, governments such as Guatemala’s continue insisting that massive public spending — in the Keynesian style — is the path toward development. More debt, more programs, more subsidies. But history tells a different story: the nations that have prospered did not do so by spending more, but by saving better. Fiscal balance is not destructive austerity. It is financial freedom, confidence for investment, and a solid foundation for creating sustainable wealth. Today, the national budget grows without control, with low execution and without tangible results: neither socially, nor in infrastructure, nor in the citizen’s pocket. It is time to stop that inertia. Let us commit to efficiency, to saving… and to surplus.
