The Diplomat
The President of Paraguay, Mario Abdo Benítez, made yesterday the first day of his official visit to Spain, where he was received by the King and the President of the Government and was entertained with a lunch in his honor at the Royal Palace.
Mario Abdo’s visit, the first to Spain since his arrival in office in August 2018, began with a reception at the Zarzuela Palace by King Philip VI, in the presence of the State Secretary for Ibero-America and the Caribbean and Spanish in the World, Juan Fernández Trigo; the Spanish ambassador to Paraguay, Carmen Castiella Ruiz de Velasco; the Paraguayan Minister of Foreign Affairs, Julio César Arriola; and the Paraguayan ambassador to Spain, Ricardo Scavone.
Later, the Paraguayan president was received by the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, at the Moncloa Complex, with whom he signed a Memorandum of Understanding on tourism and discussed the promotion of trade relations between Spain and Paraguay and the increase of the “commitment of Spanish companies to the development and prosperity of the South American country”, especially in sectors such as road infrastructure, sanitation, water or renewable energies, as reported by Moncloa in a press release. The meeting between the two presidents also highlighted the collaboration between Spain and Paraguay in areas such as the fight against human trafficking, health and development cooperation.
“We highlighted that Spain ranks first in foreign investment in Paraguay, the progress in the negotiation of the agreement on double taxation and we discussed our interest in the welfare of compatriots living in Spain,” said Mario Abdo through his official Twitter account.
Lunch at the Royal Palace
At noon, the King and Queen offered a lunch in honor of the President of Paraguay and the First Lady, Silvana López Moreira, which was attended by Pedro Sánchez, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, and the President of the Constitutional Court, Pedro González-Trevijano, among other authorities, in addition to representatives from the fields of society, culture, science and sports and Spanish companies with interests in that Ibero-American country.
During the lunch, the King addressed a few words in which he emphasized that the “treasure of nature and biodiversity” which Paraguay has, together with its “valuable historical heritage, such as the Jesuit missions”, represent “attractions of great interest to recover the Paraguayan tourist industry, essential, in turn, for a generalized recovery”.
Likewise, he continued, “our common language and its promotion are equally consubstantial elements of our union”, for which he thanked “Paraguay’s immediate interest in accompanying the efforts for the inclusion of Spanish as an official language in the International Court of Justice, which will help us to further boost the presence of Spanish in the multilateral sphere, in a fair reflection of its importance as a global language”. The King also recalled the importance of “personal ties”, reinforced by the presence of a very large and well-integrated Paraguayan community in Spain”, formed by “more than 120,000 Paraguayans currently residing in Spain”.
According to Philip VI, “the complex situation that led us to these last two years of pandemic has been an opportunity to reaffirm the solidarity of Spain with Latin America and, particularly, with Paraguay”, a commitment that took shape “in the donation of vaccines that allowed Paraguay to give a boost to its National Vaccination Plan”. He also recalled that Spanish Cooperation has been accompanying for more than thirty years “the country’s efforts, especially to make effective the right to water and sanitation, which represent half of our cooperation program”, and the cooperation trip made by Queen Letizia to Paraguay in November 2021, in which “she could see the enormous effort that is being made in all fields to contribute to the economic development of Paraguay”.
“Despite the crisis derived from the pandemic, Paraguay has been able to maintain economic stability and shows the best signs of recovery in the region, which encourages the growing interest of Spanish companies that appreciate the comparative advantages of their country,” the Monarch assured. “Our companies contribute to economic development and job creation in Paraguay, and place us as the first country in volume of foreign investment,” he added.
“But we aspire to further strengthen, if possible, our economic and commercial ties,” he continued. “We hope that both the forums held in Asunción and, now, here, as well as the finalization of the negotiation of the Double Taxation Agreement will contribute to that common goal,” he continued. “Paraguay is also for Spanish companies a preferential gateway to Mercosur” and, for that reason, “we count on your country as one of our greatest allies for the signing of the European Union-Mercosur Association Agreement,” he added.
For his part, Mario Abdo Benítez highlighted “the relevance of Spanish investments for the economic development of my country”. -I believe that the conditions of stability offered by Paraguay, our competitive advantages, the growth of our economy, the improvement of our connectivity, the successful experience of those who trusted us and the forthcoming conclusion of a bilateral agreement to avoid double taxation, provide conditions to multiply initiatives and business ventures, as in fact is already happening today,” he said. “We are also confident in the great opportunities that will open up for our commercial exchange, as a result of the conclusion of the agreement between Mercosur and the European Union”, he added.
Visit to the UNWTO
President Abdo’s day yesterday concluded with a visit to the headquarters of the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) in Madrid, accompanied by the First Lady. Paraguay participates very actively in this organization, where it chairs the Regional Commission for the Americas (CAM) for the 2021-2023 biennium.
During the visit, UNWTO Secretary-General Zurab Pololikashvili presented the Paraguayan President and the Minister of Tourism, Sofia Montiel de Afara, with 100 scholarships for the UNWTO Tourism Online Academy. “Paraguay is an example of the integrative power of tourism,” Pololikashvili stated via Twitter. “With your support, they manage to build a sector that creates jobs, protects the environment and preserves its heritage,” he added.
During his second and final day, the Paraguayan leader will hold a meeting today with the president of the ONCE Social Group, Miguel Carballeda Piñeiro; he will participate in a business breakfast offered by the Spanish Confederation of Business Organizations (CEOE), at the Confederation’s headquarters; and will attend the Spain-Paraguay Business Meeting, organized by the CEOE, the Secretary of State for Trade through ICEX Spain Export and Investment and the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, in collaboration with the Embassy of Paraguay in Spain.
In a recent interview granted to The Diplomat on the occasion of Abdo Benítez’s visit, Ambassador Ricardo Sciavone recalled that, “in 2020, Spain was the first foreign investor in Paraguay”, with 800 million dollars, and that the objective of his government is to give a new impetus to the economic relationship with Spain, strengthen educational collaboration and cooperation, and reaffirm the commitment to the Ibero-American summit system.
He also highlighted Spanish investments in public infrastructure -roads and bridges, sanitation, water treatment, construction, alternative energies, solar energy- and encouraged Spanish businessmen to invest in tourism, “because they have an enormous experience that could be very useful for us”, and in agriculture, in which “there are also many opportunities”.
