Reducing trade barriers and procedures, increasing legal security and improving productive infrastructure are part of the changes required by the business sector for the region's economic development.
In Guatemala, the 12th Ibero-American Business Meeting is held, in which the private sector presents proposals to face the current challenges and generate opportunities for the countries of the region.
The drama over the bulk of exports being primary products without added value is unfolding not only in Nicaragua.
The new president of the Association of Producers and Exporters of Nicaragua (APEN), Guillermo Jacoby, has carried out a lucid analysis of the difficulties faced by Nicaraguan exporters in increasing both the volume and the value of its sales abroad, and especially how to make this productive effort sustainable.
In the nineties a village in Costa Rica was populated by dreams of a promising future driven by the exploitation of a gold mine. Today there are only 27 inhabitants, left without hope.
EDITORIAL
An article on Nacion.com reports on the ups and downs of the gold mine project in Crucitas, in Costa Rica, which eventually fell through because environmental forces prevailed over sustainable development, leaving a long series of damages to the country in terms of confidence in the security of investments, tax losses, and mainly in the hopes of human beings who believed in and supported the mine being a catalyst for progress in the area. As usually happens, the only winners were the lawyers who litigated and continue litigating for both sides.
Employers in the region are complaining about a lack of long-term development policies, and are asking for Government transparency, effectiveness and legal certainty, so that they can continue investing in the region.
During a meeting between businessmen and government called 'Expanding opportunities: promoting the private sector and job creation', entrepreneurs from different sectors shared their concerns and views on the investment climate in the region.
A survey carried out by CID-Gallup on the perceptions of Central Americans regarding the direction of their countries shows pessimism in Guatemala, Costa Rica, El Salvador, and Honduras.
From a statement issued by CID-Gallup:
The Dominican Republic, Panama and Nicaragua are the nations in the region with the best direction for the country.
This is the result of a series of public opinion surveys that CID / Gallup Latin America carries out every year in September in Central America and the Dominican Republic. The survey has a minimum reach of 1200 households and is a representative sample of the national population.
Every year Switzerland sells about 50 thousand tons for which it receives $1.98 billion, earning a return on its coffee exports which is 5 times higher than in Germany.
An article on Msn.com reports on a not well known phenomenon practiced in Central America: the value of generating and accumulating knowledge and practicing innovation is much higher than owning and exploiting natural resources.
SMEs in developing countries could generate jobs and significant growth by taking advantage of the market opportunities offered by clean technologies.
From a report by the World Bank:
SMEs in developing countries could generate significant growth and jobs if they take advantage of market opportunities that offer clean technologies, which reach up to $1.6 trillion.
The World Bank cites weak economic growth, low tax collection and low public investment as the factors affecting productivity and preventing greater economic development from being achieved.
Less taxes and consequently poor tax collection, coupled with limited public spending, are preventing Guatemala from achieving a better level of socioeconomic development, despite having achieved timid growth rates of GDP in recent years.
The project stalled in the Guatemalan Parliament is keeping investment decisions paralyzed, until there is certainty about the rules that will govern the country.
In the meantime, President Pérez Molina once again urged the passage of the Act:
From an article on Guatemala.gob.gt:
The president of Guatemala, Otto Perez Molina, emphasized the need to pass the Law for Investment Promotion and Employment which was presented by the Executive Agency in January 2013 and is a package of reforms and new legislation to facilitate installation of firms in the country.
The second largest city in Guatemala now has more than 412,000 residents (182% more than in 2009), plus a floating population of 30,000 people per day.
At the rate of two new developments per month, and with nine universities continually bringing in more students, forecasts by the Ministry of Planning and Programming of the Presidency (SEGEPLAN) indicate that in 2032 the city popularly known as Xela, will have more than 2 million 300 thousand inhabitants.
The Chamber of Industry of Guatemala is calling on those interested in learning about the opportunities that the XXIII Central American and Caribbean Games in 2018 will generate in the south of the country.
The Chamber of Industry of Guatemala has organized for Friday 22 February, 2013, at the Teatro Municipal de Quetzaltenango, an informative meeting about the opportunities that will be arise in the south-western region of the country with the Central American and Caribbean Games 2018. The event will feature the presence of panelists Andres Castillo, President of the Chamber of Industry of Guatemala, Sergio Camargo, president of the Guatemalan Olympic Committee, the mayors of the various sites involved, Pedro Muadi, President of Congress.
In Guatemala investment is between 16% and 17% of gross domestic product, in Southeast Asia, the figure is between 25% and 35%.
Elperiodico.com.gt reports that a group of experts met last week in this country to discuss how to foster Guatemala’s growth. The analysis of the issue carried out by a member of The Growth Dialogue think tank can be extrapolated to most Central American countries.
Construction of the silver mine, el Escobal, by Tahoe Resources has brought banks, restaurants, a hotel and other businesses providing goods and services to the town of San Rafael Las Flores, Guatemala.
According to an article in Elperiodico.com.gt, "El Escobal, located in San Rafael Las Flores, Santa Rosa, is considered one of the largest silver deposits in Central America, with reserves of more than 300 million ounces, as well as containing lead, zinc and gold. The company Minera San Rafael, a subsidiary of Tahoe Resources, will operate the project for 4 years and expects to initiate the exploitation work in mid-2014. "
A recipe that mixes statistical data, reasoned argumentation and good intentions, ends in an absurd list of more or less pacific countries.
The industry of producing Indexes and Rankings, which at times provides useful information for business decision making, turns out real absurdities more often than not.
The Global Peace Index (GPI), developed by The Economist Intelligence Unit and the Institute for Economics and Peace, is a good example of this. It is based on the questionable premise that peace has a monetary value, as an economy can reach its maximum productive capacity under states of peace. It mixes, relates and weights statistical data provided by various international agencies to produce a figure that measures – according to its authors – how peaceful is each of these nations when compared to others. Its creators allege the number must be used to conduct strategic business analysis (“Using the Global Peace Index for Strategic Business Analysis”).
Given the degree of development of our region, we don't need great ideas nor millionaire investments to change our reality.
In his blog in Elfinancierocr.com, Emilio Zevallos gives an example of this: a group of African university students had the idea of installing mobile phone chargers in bicycles, the main transportation system for many people in rural areas, where electricity is scarce or does not exist.