In Guatemala, the Ministry of Health will delay for six months, the entry into force of the increase in the cost of procedures such as the issuance of licenses and health records, necessary to market food and medicines.
On December 1, 2020, by means of Governmental Agreement 179-2020, the new fees for the services of procedures of licenses, registrations and other processes for medicines, laboratories, pharmaceuticals, food products and others came into effect.
The business sector in Guatemala is anticipating an increase in the prices of food and medicines, due to the government's decision to raise the cost of procedures such as the issuance of licenses and health registrations, required to market these products.
By means of Government Agreement 179-2020, which entered into force on December 1, 2020, new fees were imposed for the services of procedures for licenses, registrations and other processes for medicines, laboratories, pharmaceuticals, food products and others.
Because of the economic crisis, Foreign Direct Investment flows have practically vanished, and in order to attract the few investments that are projected for next year, countries are expected to compete by offering incentives and aid programs for businesses.
The covid-19 outbreak dissipated the investment intentions of companies globally.
In order to ensure the supply of drinking water supply to half of the Panamanian population for the next 50 years, achieve water sustainability in its operations and guarantee its competitiveness, the Panama Canal will invest $2 billion.
Taking measures to reactivate the productive sectors, make better use of public-private partnerships and boost tourism is part of what the private sector expects from the Panamanian government in the coming year.
Six months before the Cortizo administration takes office, Panama's business sector is asking it to make the decisions the economy needs to be able to continue on the path of development, and above all, not to lose competitiveness both domestically and in relation to its peers in the region, and to be able to continue to attract foreign investment.
The latest PISA assessment confirms that Costa Rica, Panama and the Dominican Republic, the only countries in the region to appear in its ranking, are far from the average results obtained by the OECD group of nations.
Although in the last ten years the average expenditure per primary and secondary student increased by about 15% in OECD countries, most of their states do not report significant progress in education.
In the 2019 Global Competitiveness Index, Costa Rica, Panama, Guatemala, El Salvador, and Nicaragua fell back in the ranking, while Honduras registered no changes and the Dominican Republic was the only country that improved.
According to the report by the World Economic Forum, during 2019 Costa Rica ranked 62 out of 141 countries. It was followed by Panama at box 66, the Dominican Republic at 78, Guatemala at 98, Honduras at 101, El Salvador at 103 and Nicaragua at 109.
In the 2019 Travel and Tourism Competitiveness Index, Costa Rica, Panama, Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala fell back in the ranking, while the Dominican Republic was the only country that improved.
According to the report prepared by the World Economic Forum, during 2019 Costa Rica ranked 41 out of 140 countries. It was followed by Panama at box 47, the Dominican Republic at 73, Nicaragua at 91, Honduras at 94, Guatemala at 99 and El Salvador at 108.
In a competitive scenario for lower costs and higher productivity, devaluation against the Lempira Dollar in Honduras and the Cordoba Dollar in Nicaragua is a factor that could help these economies stay competitive.
In the last five years, the exchange rate in Honduras increased by 17%, from 21.06 Lempiras per U.S. dollar in June 2014 to 24.67 in the same month in 2019.
In recent years, the sector in Guatemala has lost nearly 30,000 jobs, because the high costs resulting from having one of the highest minimum wages in the region, makes it more profitable only to export raw materials, rather than making them in the country.
Vestex figures show that in recent years several jobs have been lost in the sector, given that between 2006 and 2018 the industry lost a considerable number of jobs, going from 82,109 to 53,636 places, equivalent to a 35% decrease.
Because Colombian ports have a lower operating cost base than Panamanians, the South American country competes to appropriate the logistics business in the region.
Until a while ago, Panama led the logistics operations in the region, however, there are some signs that indicate that this situation could be changing, since the growth in the movement of maritime cargo in the country has reported a slowdown in recent years. For example, between 2016 and 2017 there was a 10% increase, and last year the reported rise was just 1.7%.
From November 21st to 23rd, a regional event will be held in the country's capital to discuss issues related to competitiveness, innovation, territorial development and cluster management.
The 11th Latin American Congress of Clusters (CLAC) of the TCI Network will be held at the end of this month, on the topic "Leadership for innovation and competitiveness in Latin America: territorial development strategies based on Clusters."
Costa Rica and Panama are the economies of the region where businessmen find it easier to develop business, followed by El Salvador and Guatemala, and in the last two places, Honduras and Nicaragua.
The World Bank announced the results of the Doing Business 2019 report, which measures the regulations that favor or restrict the development of business activity in different countries. Doing Business consists of quantitative indicators on business regulations and the protection of private property rights, comparable in 190 economies.
Partly explained by delays in the labor market, between 2017 and 2018 the Central American country moved from 91st to 96th place in the Global Competitiveness Index.
According to the 2017-2018 Global Competitiveness Index report, prepared by the World Economic Forum, the decline recorded by Guatemala this year is mainly due to lags in the areas of health and labor market.
Charges, taxes, high fuel prices and other costs at airport terminals can represent close to 30% of the value of air tickets in countries in the region.
Airlines that operate in the Latin American region face an uncompetitive market, since in 2018 these companies are projected to earn $2.95 per passenger, a figure much lower than the $15.67 estimated in North America or $7.58 in Europe, according to representatives of the International Air Transport Association (IATA).
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