The past, present and future of Latin American development has been the subject of numerous studies, theories and controversies. In this essay, prepared for the fiftieth anniversary of the foundation of the Latin American and Caribbean Institute for Economic and Social Planning (ILPES);, José Antonio Ocampo traces the vicissitudes, achievements and challenges of the region's development, which, as in the rest of the world, has undergone major shifts in the past five decades. Ocampo identifies the region's development challenges, and offers his thoughts on possible ways forward and on the public policy instruments that might be employed to pursue them. Without doubt, this requires a renewed State capable of redeeming the art of public policy, and of reclaiming planning as a powerful, modern tool for achieving development with equality.