Alejandro Tomás Foxley Rioseco (born 26 May 1939 in Viña del Mar) is a Chilean

economist An economist is a professional and practitioner in the social science discipline of economics. The individual may also study, develop, and apply theories and concepts from economics and write about economic policy. Within this field there are ...

and politician. He was the Foreign Minister of

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the east a ...

from 2006 to 2009 and previously served as

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

from 1990 to 1994 and leader of the

Christian Democrat Party __NOTOC__ Christian democratic parties are political parties that seek to apply Christian principles to public policy. The underlying Christian democracy movement emerged in 19th-century Europe, largely under the influence of Catholic social tea ...

from 1994 to 1996.

Education and personal life

Foxley received a

Chemical Engineering Chemical engineering is an engineering field which deals with the study of operation and design of chemical plants as well as methods of improving production. Chemical engineers develop economical commercial processes to convert raw materials int ...

degree from the Catholic University of Valparaíso and PhD in Economics from the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

. Over his life he has received various awards including three

honorary doctorates An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad hon ...

, the Great Insignia of Honor from

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, the Ordem Nacional Cruzeiro do Sul from

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

and the Order of Civil Merit from the King of Spain. Foxley is married to Gisela Tapia Soko with two children and four grandchildren.

Economist and writer

Foxley has taught at various universities including the

University of Sussex , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

in 1973,

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...

in 1975,

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...

in 1978,

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

in 1981,

University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego or colloquially, UCSD) is a public land-grant research university in San Diego, California. Established in 1960 near the pre-existing Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego is t ...

in 1985 and the

University of Notre Dame The University of Notre Dame du Lac, known simply as Notre Dame ( ) or ND, is a private Catholic university, Catholic research university in Notre Dame, Indiana, outside the city of South Bend, Indiana, South Bend. French priest Edward Sorin fo ...

. He has written thirteen books on economics and the problems of democracy.

Political career

Foxley was appointed to the first Chilean cabinet after the restoration of democracy by

Patricio Aylwin Patricio Aylwin Azócar (; 26 November 1918 – 19 April 2016) was a Chilean politician from the Christian Democratic Party, lawyer, author, professor and former senator. He was the first president of Chile after dictator Augusto Pinochet, a ...

. He served as Minister of Finance from 1990 to 1994 and is regarded as one of the architects of the strong economic growth of the period. As Finance Minister he was also a governor of the Inter-American Development Bank and the

World Bank The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans and grants to the governments of low- and middle-income countries for the purpose of pursuing capital projects. The World Bank is the collective name for the Inte ...

. Following his period as Finance Minister Foxley was elected leader of the Christian Democrat Party in 1994, serving until 1996. In 1998 Foxley was elected a member of the

Senate of Chile The Senate of the Republic of Chile is the upper house of Chile's bicameral National Congress, as established in the current Constitution of Chile. Composition According to the present Constitution of Chile, the Senate is composed of forty-t ...

for Santiago East. In the Senate he was the Chairman of the Finance Committee for four years until he stood down from the Senate in 2006. During his period in the Senate he was seen as a possible Presidential candidate but backed the candidacy of

Michelle Bachelet Verónica Michelle Bachelet Jeria (; born 29 September 1951) is a Chilean politician who served as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights from 2018 to 2022. She previously served as President of Chile from 2006 to 2010 and 2014 to 201 ...

in the

Presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The pre ...

. Bachelet appointed him as Foreign Minister in March 2006 following her victory in the election. In March 2009 Foxley resigned as Foreign Minister for personal reasons and to pursue other interests. Today he is a member of Washington D.C. based think tank, the Inter-American Dialogue.

References

External links

CV of Alejandro Foxley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Foxley, Alejandro Living people 1939 births Academics of the University of Sussex Candidates for President of Chile 20th-century Chilean economists Chilean Ministers of Finance Chilean people of English descent Christian Democratic Party (Chile) politicians Foreign ministers of Chile Massachusetts Institute of Technology faculty Members of the Inter-American Dialogue People from Viña del Mar Pontifical Catholic University of Valparaíso alumni University of California, Berkeley faculty University of California, San Diego faculty University of Notre Dame faculty University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni