With a new system, the authorities promise to reduce the time for granting environmental permits from 70 to 49 days for high-impact projects, and 20-16 for mild impact ones.
According to a statement issued by the Salvadoran authorities, the new System of Environmental Impact Assessment (SEIA) "... will speed up and reduce waiting times for the issuance of Environmental Permits by up to 30%.
The same shipping company which has not yet received authorization from Nicaragua to operate a ferry between La Union and Puerto Corinto, has now announced that it intends to run the service to Puerto Caldera in Costa Rica.
An announcement has been made that in January 2015, a ferry will start operations connecting the port of La Union, El Salvador, with the port Caldera in Costa Rica, to be run by the shipping company Odiel.
Due to recent seizures of products attempting to enter the country without health permits, an announced has been made of enhanced controls to prevent the entry of any food that does not have the appropriate certifications.
From a statement issued by the Government of Panama:
Pursuant to the Health Standards and / or phytosanitary and health protection of the population, the Panamanian Authority for Food Safety (AUPSA) reiterates that any food product that does not meet the required provisions will be retained, returned or incinerated if necessary.
The Spanish shipping company interested in operating the route said it is awaiting permits from Nicaragua and that it will invest $14 million so that operations can start in October.
Carlos López Barrundia, Naviera del Odiel representative in El Salvador, told Laprensagrafica.com that the initial investment comprises of "... funds for the installation of offices, hiring staff and for the boat that will provide the service."
The Directorate General of Posts has announced a program that would allow SMEs to export goods via mail, providing permission to export via a simplified system.
The initiative of the entity is primarily directed to micro, small and medium-sized exporters.
"... The ‘Exportafácil’ (Easyexport) plan is aimed at individual craftsmen and other organizations so that they can participate in the international market through the implementation of a Simplified Export System using the post service."
The industry claims that the law streamlining procedures is not being implemented in all institutions involved in the permitting process.
The law which aims to reduce the time it takes to gain authorization for medium and long term real estate projects from 880 days to 175 days, is not being applied equally by state entities.
Carlos Guerrero, president of the Salvadoran Chamber of Construction (Casalco) said in an article on Laprensagrafica.com ".... 'Importance has not been given to this law. There are many (government) institutions that are not complying with it.'"
The shysters who live off government paperwork have reacted with alarm to the agility of the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources regarding permits for Minimum Environmental Impact Activities.
Editorial
An article on Plazapública.com.gt reports that until very recently, "... there were only three ways of classifying Environmental Instruments.
Trade ministers from the region are promoting the regional recognition of sanitary permits by its digitization and online availability.
Trade ministers from the region analyzed uploading permissions to a web platform in order to expedite the process of trading regionally. The initiative would allow an exporter registered in Guatemala not to have to send physical documents to another Central American country in order to register.
A proposal by the Salvadoran Chamber of the Construction Industry aims to lower from two years to six months the time taken to obtain the necessary construction permits.
According to Carlos José Guerrero, president of the Salvadoran Chamber of the Construction Industry (Casalco) preparations have been made for the Act to Streamline Procedures for Building Permits which will be sent to Congress in the next few days.
The Deputy Minister of Transport of El Salvador has delayed for up to eight months permits for tourist transport vehicles.
Tour Operators meeting in the Salvadoran Chamber of Tourism (CASATUR), denounced the delay in the delivery of operation permits by the Vice Ministry of Transportation (VMT) and harassment by the Transit Police. Bureaucracy at the Vice Ministry has created delays of up to eight months in the granting of permits which has caused forfeiture of vehicles by the Police.
The Salvadoran construction sector has proposed a way to revive the sector, creating a single desk for faster approval of building permits.
Mario Rivera, president of the Chamber of Construction (CASALCO) noted that in this way the current waiting time could be reduced from almost two years to ninety days.
"The hard work that a company has to do visiting so many institutions to obtain a permit is an obstacle to investment", added the executive director of CASALCO, Ismael Nolasco in an article in Elsalvador.com
This first unification of regulations will benefit the export sector of food and medicine industry.
The signing of the agreement to unify technical regulations will be held next Monday and will then be submitted for review to the countries of the World Trade Organization (WTO).
"The unification of rules prevents companies ... to have the need to arrange export permits for each country in the region," reports the article in Nacion.com.
The procedures for obtaining an environmental permit now require between 6 months and 2 years; they could be shortened to 60 days.
Ismael Nolasco, from the Salvadoran Chamber of Construction (CASALCO), remarked they have held talks with the Environment Ministry and agreed on a new scheme that will come into effect this week.
He told newspaper La Prensa Gráfica that “for the time being, a special counter will be put in place for builders to present their projects. Nolasco remarked that by ‘defining clear rules’ constructors will be able to submit all the required paperwork in one shot, so they are not asked for additional requirements later”.
American Secretary of Agriculture, Edward Schafer, indicated that in order to improve access for the products, they will speed up the processes for phytosanitary approval.
This process "can take years for a plant or animal product to go from one country to another. We hope to improve the system as long as we are guided by scientific standards and not by political or commercial reasons," said Schafer in a press conference at the end of his two day visit to Guatemala.