One in eight economically active Panamanians receives a salary from the State, a growing trend which constitutes a serious risk for the development of the country.
An article on Nacion.com reports that "... The number of staff working for the State in March amounted to 204,904, representing an increase of 7,857 or 4% compared with March 2013, according to the Comptroller General of the Republic. "
The Guatemalan government has launched a Business Innovation Program but the website where companies sign up to it is not functioning.
Editorial
If you want to pontificate on how to do business, the first thing you should do is to demonstrate efficacy. We will keep insisting that public officials should not try to teach entrepreneurs how to do things, but instead devote themselves to removing bureaucratic obstacles and infrastructure, and in particular to doing their own jobs effectively and efficiently. Until this happens, the hundreds of "business support" programs that appear every year in Central America, will only end up being good intentions and nothing else.
It is remarkable how the role of the State has been misrepresented, especially in some countries in the region. The primary functions of governments are being carried out at half measures or not being done at all: the insecurity of people and goods is increasing, justice is neither swift nor effective, health and education services are only for those who can afford them, and public infrastructure is a far cry from the taxes that correspond to paying for it.
The presidential candidate from the Libertarian Movement party is proposing freezing the state's payroll and implementing productivity based wages.
The Libertarian Movement (Movimiento Libertario) party said that a new government would slow hiring in the public sector and apply wages according to productivity, as they are applied in the private sector.
Entrepreneurs and ALL presidential candidates agree on the need to eliminate privileges and unfair wage abuses in the public sector.
"On this point the five candidates that top the polls agreed during a debate organized by the Costa Rican Union of Chambers and Associations of Private Business Sector (UCCAEP)," reported an article in Ameliarueda.com.
"Costa Rica is the only country in the region where the salaries of public employees exceed those of the private sector."
An editorial in Nacion.com discusses Central Government schemes for salaries and pensions, describing them as "nothing short of chaotic and unsustainable."
Though means of five rounds of talks Costa Rica's government is attempting to build a social pact that will enable solutions to be found to the plight of the state's finances.
An article in Elfinancierocr.com reviews the topics to be discussed dates of the meetings scheduled by the Ministry of Finance:
Businessmen who struggle everyday to keep their businesses going should keep this topic in mind when being asked to pay more taxes.
No economy that wants to be competitive can support the idea that the average number of sick days taken by workers at its main port terminal is 29.7 per year.
Of course these are state employees. And of course the union of these workers, doesn't want to know anything about privatization nor have private companies performing the same tasks.
Why is it that in general public enterprises register losses while private ones normally earn profits?
An analysis of the issue by Rogelio Arce Barrantes in Prensalibre.cr summarizes the situation with the words of the popular [Spanish] saying "If its free, let's party."
Although Arce Barrantes focuses on Costa Rica, the situation can be extrapolated to other Central American countries, where there are state enterprises engaged in various business activities, whether in the production of goods or services.
The Chamber of Industry of Guatemala has requested that Congress approve reforms to laws which prevent or reduce corruption and to punish public officials involved in such acts.
From a press release issued by the Coordinating Committee of Agricultural, Commercial, Industrial and Financial Associations (CACIF):
As part of the site visit scheduled for this day, regarding the evaluation of Guatemala in the Follow-up Mechanism to the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (MESICIC-OAS), the Chamber of Industry of Guatemala (CIG) participated with a presentation on "Cooperation between the private sector and the supervisory bodies in efforts to prevent and combat corruption."
The president of Honduras is inviting bids for the administration of a trust for the timely payment of wages of state officials.
Elheraldo.hn reports that President Porfirio Lobo said that "This measure is intended to end the constant strikes by institutions and workers' protests because of non-payment of wages and other benefits enjoyed by government employees. '
In the Costa Rican National Development Corporation, there are 130 expendable personnel whose salaries are greater than $2,300 a month.
An article in Nacion.com quotes Wlliam Barrantes, the chief executive of the National Production Council (CNP), who manages the National Liquor Factory (Fanal), and runs the Institutional Supply Program (IAP), which sells food to ministries such as Justice (prisons), Security (police) and the Social Security Department (hospitals).
In light of increases of salaries of mayors and councilors, business leaders in El Salvador are urging the austere and responsible use of public funds.
A statement from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of El Salvador reads:
español
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