Jesús Silva-Herzog Flores

Jesús Silva Herzog Flores studied economics at UNAM and Yale and helped establish Infonavit, Mexico's national workers' housing institute. He became finance secretary in 1982, when falling revenues, capital flight, and foreign debt pushed Mexico into crisis. He negotiated with foreign governments, banks, and the International Monetary Fund over debt payments and continued in the ministry under Miguel de la Madrid until 1986. Although he opposed the decision to nationalize the banks, he remained responsible for carrying out the government's financial policy. ^{1, 2}

Silva Herzog subsequently served as ambassador to Spain and as tourism secretary before taking the Washington embassy during Ernesto Zedillo's presidency. At the White House on January 15, 1997, he and Treasury Secretary Robert Rubin signed the protocol terminating the special U.S. loan agreement created during Mexico's peso crisis. Mexico had repaid the last $3.5 billion of the $13.5 billion it borrowed, more than three years ahead of schedule. ^{2, 3}

He later ran unsuccessfully for head of government of Mexico City as the PRI candidate. His public reflections on economic policy included criticism of errors made by administrations in which he had served. Silva Herzog died in March 2017. ²