When the first cases of covid-19 were reported in the region in March 2020, most governments decided to paralyze a large part of productive activities and decree home quarantines. These actions focused on containing the advance of the virus caused a severe economic crisis in all countries.

Check out the "System for monitoring markets and economic situation in Central American countries" of CentralAmericaData.

As of June, restrictions began to be gradually lifted and most economic sectors are now operating.

With the arrival of the end of the year holidays, a rise in the number of cases of covid-19 is predicted, a situation that would put pressure on Central American health systems and could force governments to decree new restrictions on the economy.

Although the possibility of new suspensions in productive activities is not ruled out, there are specialists who believe that it is possible to implement other strategies.

Martin Rama, chief economist for Latin America and the Caribbean at the World Bank, told Prensalibre.com that "... Today we are not in the same conditions of March or April, we know more, and the countries are more equipped, there are less deaths per case and each case can be treated better, therefore, it is impossible to manage with more restricted measures."

According to Rama, the first reaction when the cases appeared was closure, because there was no other viable option in the hands, and now reactions can be given that are less costly to the economy and equally effective in health matters.

In the case of Guatemala, the Minister of Economy, Antonio Malouf, said that "... there is already experience and management of covid-19, and 'you can not have another closure so strong as it was at the beginning of the pandemic."

Malouf added that "... these outbreaks exist, but now we know how to handle them better. That total shutdown that we are afraid would be a disgrace to the national economy, I think is not going to exist."

Source: prensalibre.com

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