The Government and the private sector have laid the foundation for a strategy to follow to apply for formal admission to the agreement and to take advantage of, among other things, "country of origin".
The benefit of"country of origin"that can be taken advantage of by the member countries of the Transpacific Agreement allows the use of raw materials originating in another country to be used as if they were their own. This "... will be beneficial not only for the free zones themselves but also for SMEs."We are talking about the expansion of markets, because Nicaragua is coming to countries with which it does not have this free trade scheme" said the president of the Superior Council of Private Enterprise, Jose Adan Aguerri.
Analysis of the impact of the Trans-Pacific Partnership on the region.
The competition which sectors such as textiles could face is one of the elements raising questions among employers in the region, compared to the real benefits that could be accrued if Central America participates in the Strategic Economic Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP).
The presence of direct competitors, such as countries like Vietnam, in the textile sector, and the possibility of losing dominance in the American market due to trade rules that TPP countries must meet, is unsettling the productive sectors in the region and forcing a reckoning of the pros and cons of a possible entry to the block to be undertaken.
The president of the Dominican Republic has warned the U.S. government about the impact the Trans- Pacific treaty in the textile sector in the region.
From a statement by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Dominican Republic:
On November 27, President Danilo Medina sent a communication to the President of the United States, Barack Obama, in which it reiterated its concern expressed during the meeting held in San José, Costa Rica, in May, in connection with the negative impact which could come from the Trans- Pacific Economic Partnership Agreement (TPP) on the textile and clothing industry in the signatory countries of the DR -CAFTA and the region, if certain special concessions that could cause changes in the management and values of hemispheric trade, and on a worldwide level.
The Panamanian business sector believes that this could affect sensitive sectors such as agriculture and industrial production, if the nation joins the group.
Manuel Ferreira, chief economist of the Chamber of Commerce, said that caution should be exercised in this regard "especially as we had a hard time safeguarding these sensitivities in treaties with Colombia, Chile and Peru, which are members of the Alliance, and now the possibility arising of opening all sectors is of great concern. "
The Pacific Alliance is now operating and producing results which are favorable to the development of the nations which compose it, and it is a natural environment for Central American countries to be integrated into.
Editorial
The very apt comparison made by analyst Andres Oppenheimer between the economic blocs Mercosur-Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela-, and the Pacific Alliance-Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru (soon to also include Costa Rica) - shows the major conceptual differences between one group and another, and the concrete results generated for the development of their people.
If Asian countries like Malaysia and Vietnam get access for their textiles to the U.S. under the same conditions granted in the DR-CAFTA, the Central American textile sector will be at risk.
The Salvadoran Chamber of Textiles, Clothing and Free Zones (CAMTEX), warns of the risk posed to the sector if the Trans Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) comes into effect.