More than two years after an initiative was presented in Guatemala to create an autonomous entity made up of the government and private investors, which would be in charge of planning and executing road works, the proposal has not yet received the endorsement of the Legislative and the road network is still in poor condition.
During the National Meeting of Entrepreneurs (Enade) 2017 the proposal to create the Superintendence of Road Infrastructure (Sivial) arose, an institution that would be an autonomous entity with the function of planning, tendering and contracting infrastructure works.
Van der Laat & Jiménez, H3 Guatemala, Constructora Codico, Bagatrac S.A. and Constructora Meco are some of the main companies that last year won contracts to design and build public works in Central American countries.
An analysis by CentralAmericaData's Trade Intelligence Unit provides interesting data on the companies that in 2019 were favored with contracts to design and build government buildings, roads, bridges, streets, overpasses and other public infrastructure works in Central American countries.
In Costa Rica, investments in the construction of highways, roads and bridges are forecast to grow in 2019 and 2020, by 47% and 10%, respectively.
The 2019-2020 Macroeconomic Program of the Central Bank of Costa Rica (BCCR), explains that by 2019, the acceleration in the development of road infrastructure projects will be the main engine of growth in public investment.
Constructora Meco, V&T S.A., Ingeniería REC and Constructora Rodsa are some of the companies that in 2018 were awarded contracts to build public infrastructure works in Central America.
An analysis compiled by the Trade Intelligence unit at CentralAmericaData provides data on the companies that during the last year were awarded by the governments of the region, with contracts to execute construction works in Central American countries.
The Inter-American Development Bank approved a loan to finance the construction of infrastructure to reduce flooding and make urban improvements in the Juan Díaz River basin.
The Panama Mayor's Office informed that the resources will be used in three components. A first component of Flood Mitigation Infrastructure; a second component to improve the quality of public spaces; and a third component that will support the sustainability of the investments foreseen in components one and two, and the capacities of the Municipality of Panama to carry out the integral management of the basin during this program.
In the first six months of the year, government entities from the countries of the region submitted 73 environmental impact studies for the construction of different public infrastructure projects.
The interactive platform "Construction in Central America", from the Trade Intelligence Area of CentralAmericaData, provides the updated list of public and private construction projects that present the environmental impact studies (EIA) to the respective institutions of each country.
The government of Costa Rica has authorized the execution of resources for the road renovation of 270 km of roads and drainage systems starting in the first half of 2019.
The Ministry of National Planning and Economic Policy (Mideplan) approved the execution of the second stage of the Cantonal Road Infrastructure Program (PRVC II), which should be implemented in five years through 110 projects that will improve 270.8 km of cantonal roads and drainage systems.
The government announced that in 2019 it will invest $578 million in the completion of Line 2 and in the construction of the branch that goes from the Technological University to Tocumen.
Although Line 2 must be operational in April 2019, Metro de Panamá announced that in January it will bring into operation five stations and 12 of the 20 wagons that the Line will have, in order to meet demand foreseen during World Youth Day.
The Varela administration's budget for next year includes $4.032 billion for the City of Health and new polyclinics, Metro Lines 2 and 3, and construction of road works, such as the Santiago-David highway.
The budget presented by the Ministry of Economy and Finance in Panama includes several items for public investment projects, which together amount to just over $4 billion, according to the institution's budget report.
The Municipality of Guatemala City reported that it plans to implement two new lines of the Transmetro service, which will involve bringing 28 stations into operation.
The mayor of the Guatemalan capital, Ricardo Quiñónez, explained to Dca.gob.gt that "... medium and long-term planning has been established, in relation to the Transmetro service, which includes the implementation of two new lines: 7, to zone 12, and 5, to zone 5."
In Costa Rica, the brand-new Alvarado administration faces the challenge of solving complex problems such as the growing fiscal deficit, deteriorated infrastructure and high production costs which are affecting the competitiveness of companies.
The Costa Rican - North American Chamber of Commerce (AmCham) shared criteria of "...
A housing complex in Honduras, a road in Panama and the expansion of a hospital in Costa Rica are some of the construction projects planned in the region.
The interactive system "Construction in Central America", compiled by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData, includes an up to date list of public and private construction projects that are planned to be built in the region.
Road works in Guatemala and Panama, and the expansion of a potable water system in Costa Rica are some of the public projects planned for the coming months in the region.
The interactive platform "Construction in Central America" compiled by the Business Intelligence Unit at CentralAmericaData provides an up to date list of public and private construction projects for which EIA's were submitted to the respective institutions of each country in October 2017.
The controversy generated by the UNOPS's decision to prevent access to files on the road works for which it is responsible has led the government to refrain from granting new projects in the future.
Possibly as a result of the refusal of the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) to make public the project files and the subsequent cancellation of contracts by the Comptroller General, the Ministry of Public Works has decided not to continue with the assistance of the international organization in future projects.
In the four years that the law of associations between the State and private companies in El Salvador has been in effect, not a single infrastructure project has been able to materialize using this business scheme.
Although there are at least seven infrastructure projects that were initially proposed as being those with the highest priority and ideals to be developed under the public-private partnership scheme and with funding from Fomilenio II, none of them has managed to materialize.