The Asian giant has a vast and growing construction industry, that will amount to $700 billion in 2015, meaning significant opportunities for companies in the isthmus.
Baltodano Mauritius’ analysis focuses on the opportunities for Costa Rica companies in China in the spheres of Architecture, Engineering and Construction, but its concepts and conclusions can be extrapolated to the entire region.
An act to streamline procedures intends to reduce the bureaucratic time delay to 120 days, so that construction companies can dynamize the economy with new buildings.
Currently the number formalities required for a construction project is 18.
Elmundo.com.sv reports that "Carlos Guerrero, president of the Salvadoran Chamber of the Construction Industry (Casalco), who also served as environment minister between 2004 and 2009, indicated that this delay makes the country less competitive and will increase costs unnecessarily. "
Latin American construction chambers are demanding from their governments a level playing field between foreign construction companies and domestic ones.
A statement from the Costa Rican Chamber of Construction reads:
FOREIGN AND NATIONAL CONSTRUCTION AND INFRASTRUCTURE COMPANIES ON EQUAL TERMS
• A joint statement was made in the Twenty-Eighth Congress of American Building Industry in Lima, Peru.
The Ministry of Public Works has put out to tender construction services and is asking companies to undergo the prequalification process.
The Ministry of Public Works, Transport and Housing and Urban Development through the project "Provision of Housing for families in high risk areas" to be executed by the Vice minister for Housing and Urban Development, and funded through the 2015 BCIE loan agreement , requires the services of individuals and / or legal entities with specific expertise in processes related to the construction of housing projects to undergo the prequalification process.
The prospects of the construction sector for this year are a 4% decrease.
Ismael Nolasco, executive director of the Salvadoran Construction Industry Chamber (CASALCO) informed Elsalvador.com: "There are no closed businesses, but 30% of them just pay taxes and services and go to the office because there is no work; sector outlook for this year is that there will be a 4% decrease and this estimate translates into businesses closing."