Weekly briefing - Sep 13, 2026 - Sep 20, 2026
Paraguay: power, infrastructure, and services under pressure
The week's key decisions, with context and links to the original sources.
Paraguay's week combined power struggles within the Colorado Party, scrutiny of public resources, and concrete signs of transformation in energy, infrastructure, and services. At the same time, security, health, and migration showed the distance between new policies, institutional capacity, and their implementation across the country—the thread connecting the main developments below.
Politics: loyalties, resources, and institutional control
The crisis between Honor Colorado and Santiago Peña's circle is no longer merely rhetorical: it has reached the processing of an IPS emergency measure and the dispute over its investments. Meanwhile, the Andy Rivas case exposes the difference between having no contract and having informal access to power. The allegations concerning Ciudad del Este remain unproven and require caution.
- Paraguay’s Chamber of Deputies blocks IPS bill amid Honor Colorado’s internal crisisABC Color
- Foreign minister says Rivas is a friend with no contract, but had official access and lobbied for the OASABC Color, Ultima Hora
- Iramain sees power struggle and business interests between Cartes and Peña; Benítez mocks ANR infighting1000 Noticias, Ultima Hora
- Mauro Barreto alleges alleged corruption in Ciudad del Este’s Public Prosecutor’s Office and courtsEl Observador
Economy: abundant energy, contested contracts
Itaipu is operating its spillway with a higher flow after above-usual rainfall, with no reported impact on generation, while the government prepares a new local bond issue. The Atome-ANDE dispute centers on what the 2022 contract actually provides—and distinguishes a potential contractual claim from a claim based on the investment treaty.
- Itaipu keeps spillway open as flow rises 61%, with operation subject to change if rains continueABC Color
- Former ANDE chief Sosa says Atome lacks contractual basis for claims against utilityABC Color
- Paraguay to hold fourth local bond issue on September 23 through the Asunción Stock ExchangeUltima Hora
Infrastructure: the transition appears in the numbers and the works
Electricity consumption exceeded biomass consumption for the first time in 2025, with strong growth also in activities linked to digital infrastructure. The connection with Brazil remains incomplete: access roads to the Puente de la Integración became 15.23% more expensive, while the bridge over the Monday River reached 45% completion. In Asunción, the urban train still depends on studies.
- Electricity surpasses biomass for the first time in Paraguay’s energy consumption in 2025Medios del Estado, Hoy, La Nacion, El Nacional
- Access roads to Puente de la Integración become 15.23% more expensive, while bridge over the Monday River reaches 45% completionABC Color
Security: intense enforcement, trust still contested
Authorities reported operations against marijuana, cocaine, and fraud schemes, including the seizure of 106.2 kilograms from a truck with a Paraguayan license plate in Brazil. The conviction of eight police officers for a double homicide in Ciudad del Este offers a rare judicial test of public-force accountability, while reports of street-level drug dealing in Asunción point to persistent everyday problems.
- Eight police officers convicted of double homicide in Ciudad del Este; two acquittedHoy, Ultima Hora, Unicanal
- Senad destroys more than 10 tons of marijuana in Amambay operation; sources differ on seizures and detentionsABC Color, Medios del Estado
- Federal Highway Police seize 106.2 kg of cocaine hidden in an adapted tank on a Paraguayan truck in ParanáUltima Hora
- Drug dealing and insecurity affect residents of “La Lengua” in Asunción’s Barrio JaraABC Color
Society: public services between expansion and demands for accountability
The country expanded HIV testing and shortened the interval before treatment, but the change at the Ministry of Health took place amid political pressure and a doctors' strike. In migration, mobile services are responding to documented demand, while the proposal for licenses for potentially dangerous dogs is still at the committee stage. Berta Rojas brings an internationally significant cultural note.
Health: more diagnosis, change in leadership
The public network conducted 371,480 rapid HIV tests in 2025, reached all 18 health regions, and accelerated the start of antiretroviral therapy. The appointment of Isaías Fretes, however, reveals the political dimension of management: he takes office after pressure related to the doctors' strike and with a promise to strengthen prevention and primary care nationwide.
- Paraguay expands HIV testing and speeds up the start of antiretroviral treatmentItapua Noticias, Medios del Estado, La Nacion
- Political pressure and strike bring down Barán as Fretes takes over Paraguay’s Health Ministry with a focus on preventionHoy, La Nacion, Ultima Hora, Medios del Estado
- Chamber of Deputies examines G. 2.1 billion in transfers to Santa Rita health body amid electoral suspicionsABC Color, La Nacion
Follow the links to distinguish announcements, official data, allegations that remain unverified, and decisions that have already been formalized.