In Panama, a pilot plan by the Food Authority aims to simplify and expedite the process of importing food, grouping into a single sheet the notifications pertaining to a procedure.
The proposal put forward by the Panamanian Food Safety Authority (Aupsa), for now in a pilot phase, would replace the program that has been used since 2007.
Through an agreement with the business sector, the government of Honduras has announced that it intends to simplify procedures for licenses and registration of companies.
As part of a plan to facilitate private investment, the Hernandez administration has announced that they will also be talking with mayors so that local governments facilitate the operation of companies nationwide. In addition they"... announced that from April they will start using customs' forward looking statement."
As part of a pilot plan in Nicaragua eight companies have started using the Foreign Trade Single Window system, a platform that allows pre-customs procedures to be carried out.
The window that is expected to start operating in the middle of the year will allow for procedures to obtain permits and documents needed to export or import to be done online, including payments in banks and institutions via an online platform.
The first stage of reduction of procedures that the Salvadoran government plans to implement in the coming months will include eliminating duplication of procedures between entities.
In Panama, a tender is being launched for services to modernize and systematize procedures for granting environmental permits, with a focus on the evaluation and inspection stages.
Panama Government Purchase 2018-1-08-0-08-LV-024170:
"The main objective of the modernization and systematization of environmental procedures, is that officials, agents, citizens and other related entities be able to initiate and follow up on their evaluation and inspection procedures online.
Since October 2017, constructions whose coverage exceeds 20% of the land must submit a hydrogeological study.
The entry into force of the Generic Matrix for the Protection of Aquifers has generated doubts about what the projects that must comply with the presentation of the hydrogeological study really are.On the one hand, the guide indicates that constructions which have a coverage of land equal to or less than 20% of the area will not need the study, and on the other hand, representatives of the National Service of Underground Waters of Irrigation and Drainage (Senara), suggest a different interpretation.
With the implementation of the VUCE 2.0 system, approvals of import permits managed by companies in the food, medical, chemical and pharmaceutical sectors in Costa Rica are set to be accelerated.
From a statement issued by PROCOMER:
San José, December 7, 2017.Companies in the food, medical, chemical and pharmaceutical sectors that operate in Costa Rica will have greater ease in acquiring their raw materials and finished products, now that the VUCE 2.0 system will implement a 24/7 approval system for import permits (technical notes) for those sectors.
A free virtual seminar has been organized for November 30 on the procedures and requisites for exporting food products to the United States.
The free webinar organized by the Secretariat of Economic Integration (SIECA) is called "Exporting food products to the United States, who regulates it?"and will be held online on November 30, from 10 am to 11:30 am.
With the implementation of the commercial license process, the time it takes to formally set up a company in the cantons of Abangares, Cañas, Tilarán, Bagaces, Liberia and La Cruz has been reduced from 40 to 7 days.
The Ministry of Economy explained in a statement that in addition to a reduction in the time that takes to formalize a company, an improvement has also been made in the time it takes to undertake the process to obtain construction permits.
Its been reported that the time it now takes to obtain a construction permit to develop a large project is 125 days, compared to the 279 days it took previously.
The Regulatory Improvement Organization (OMR) reports that in the case of less complex construction projects, the timeframe for completing the process has been reduced from 125 to 50 business days.
In Guatemala, four bills are being prepared to facilitate registration of one-person companies, export and import of goods and to regulate bankruptcy of a company.
The goal of the National Competitiveness Program (Pronacom) is to implement a series of measures to help improve the country's deteriorating business climate, which, in addition to being affected by political problems, continues to face the serious problem of excessive bureaucracy.Pronacom is working on four bills that it plans to present next year.
A proposal has been made for registration of companies to be certified directly in the National Center of Records, eliminating the high cost of certification through means of notaries.
An article on Elmundo.sv notes that Jaime Campos, executive director of the Regulatory Improvement Organization (OMR), created by FOMILENIO II, said that El Salvador "...
About 125 instances of regulatory approval and logistical adequacy need to be resolved as part of the process to incorporate El Salvador into the Customs Union with Guatemala and Honduras.
As part of the negotiations that began this week, more than 125 customs and logistics procedures will have to be analyzed, a process that could take until early next year.
Salvadoran industrialists claim that with the presidential veto of the administrative simplification law, the country has lost a valuable opportunity to improve the already deteriorated business climate.
EDITORIAL
With the veto of the Administrative Simplification Act, the Salvadoran government is sending a clear message to the business community and to society in general: There is no interest in paving the way for the private sector to generate more jobs and, consequently, more wealth and socioeconomic development.
Proportion of people who have paid a bribe in the last year to access a public service: in Panama 38%, in Honduras 33%, in El Salvador 31%, in Nicaragua 30%, in Guatemala 28% and in Costa Rica, 24%.
EDITORIAL
The report "People and Corruption: Latin America and the Caribbean", prepared by Transparency International, shows how inhabitants of Latin American countries have got used to corruption: from the scandalous cases at the highest political level to under the table payments which are made on a daily basis when carrying out procedures as simple as requesting medical care in a public hospital or obtaining a document from a public office.