After winning the general election on March 19th, the Movementu Futuro Kòrsou (MFK) and the Partido Nashonal di Pueblo (PNP) formed a coalition government, which was sworn in on June 14th. The new government is tasked with steering Curaçao's economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, which has dramatically affected the small, tourism-dependent economy.

Although cross-party differences relating to the Dutch government's influence over Curaçao's internal affairs and economic policy-especially regarding fiscal support during the pandemic-will persist, the government's stronger legislative position compared with its predecessor will allow it to advance its policy agenda with relative ease. The coalition government holds 13 out of the 21 seats in the Staten (parliament), compared with 11 seats held by the previous govern-ment-a coalition between the Partido Alternativa Real (PAR) and the Partido MAN (MAN). As a result, the current government will experience fewer risks to governability than the previous administration.

Conditions of Dutch-led oversight and governance structures have proven extremely contentious in Curaçao. Although the MFK claimed prior to the March general election that a fresh poll would give the new government a stronger mandate in future negotiations with the Netherlands, The Economist Intelligence Unit does not expect the new government to have significantly stronger capacity than the previous one-led by the former prime minister, Eugene Rhuggenaath (2017-21)-to negotiate with the Dutch authorities, given that the country has little choice but to rely on the Dutch government for fiscal support. Therefore, stringent austerity measures will remain on the table. The domestic environment will be a hotbed for civil unrest and strikes (as seen in June 2020, when the previous government similarly adopted austere measures), which will further undermine the economic recovery.