The Uruguayan president, Luis Lacalle Pou, is the highest paid president in the Latin American region with a salary that is up to six times higher than that of the last on the list, which is Luis Arce from Bolivia.
Lacalle Pou currently has a gross monthly salary of 864,739.08 Uruguayan pesos (equivalent to about US$20,956.95).although when the discounts are applied, its net amount is 449,633.90 Uruguayan pesos (around US$10,896.87), according to information released by the Presidency of the Republic itself.
The President of the Republic is deducted $115,912 from Montepío, $46,364 from FONASA and $252,848 from personal income tax.
The second best paid is the president of Guatemala, Alejandro Giammattei, who receives a gross salary in the local currency, quetzales, equivalent to US$19,576.
In third place is the new president of Chile, Gabriel Boric, who upon his arrival in power receives US$10,896 per month, but in pesos it translates to CLP$9,104,697.
The Colombian president, Iván Duque, earns half of what Lacalle Pou earns, about US$10,170, and Mexican Andrés Manuel López Obrador receives much less, to whom the State deposits about $8,317 every month.
Further down the list is the outgoing president of Costa Rica – whose term ends in May and hands over the baton to Rodrigo Cháves – who has a gross salary of US$7,360, just US$360 more than his Panamanian counterpart, Laurentino Cortazo, who by law receives $7,000.
For his part, the Brazilian Jair Bolsonaro receives a monthly payment from the State of US$6,629 but which he complements with a military pension of US$2,426.
At the bottom of the list are Guillermo Lasso from Ecuador, who claims to donate his salary of US$6,446; Argentine Alberto Fernández, who earns US$5,650 per month; the Honduran Xiomara Castro who receives US$5,609; Paraguayan Mario Abdo Benítez whose income is US$5,532; Salvadoran Nayib Bukele who is paid $5,181 for being president; Pedro Castillo, who for being the highest ruler of Peru is compensated with US$4,285 per month and, finally, Luis Arce from Bolivia who receives US$3,535 per month.
Compared to Justin Trudeau
For perspective, the president of the United States, Joe Biden, has an annualized salary of US$400,000, which divided by twelve months averages approximately US$33,300, some US$13,000 above what Lacalle Pou is paid.
For his part, the Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau -who is the highest executive figure because there is no figure of president in that country- earns around CAD$357,800 (Canadian dollars), which translates into about US$281,000 a year. Per month, the pay is US$23,416.
