The Diplomat
The CEO of ICEX, María Peña, stressed this week “the depth of the economic and trade relations that link Guatemala and Spain” and pointed out that there is ample room for improvement in the diversification of the Central American country’s exports to the European Union.
Peña was speaking at the Multilateral Partnership for Development Conference, which was held in Guatemala City from 29 to 31 March, organised by ICEX Spain and the Spanish Embassy in Guatemala, and in which some twenty businessmen from our country took part.
The businessmen represented sectors such as energy, construction of health centres, hospitals and strengthening of the national health system; water supply and sanitation; civil infrastructure, and in particular, roads, railways and prisons. Some of the attendees represented Grupo Cobra, Acciona Energía and Cemosa, specialised in energy; or Makiber, Arpa, Consorcio Español de Salud and Farmadosis, linked to the health sector.
During their stay in Guatemala, they held sectoral meetings with representatives of the main multilateral financing institutions (IFIs), local government and relevant public companies for tendering purposes. In addition, they developed an individual agenda, which included interviews with local companies in their sector.
María Peña was joined at the inauguration by the Ministers of Public Finance and Economy of Guatemala, a country which, according to ICEX, is the largest economy in Central America, with a GDP of more than 80 billion US dollars, equivalent to 39% of the regional GDP. It is a market of almost 18 million inhabitants, with a per capita income of more than 4,600 dollars, and is the main destination for Spanish exports to the region.
The note adds that, prior to the pandemic, Guatemala’s economy had been on a path of lasting stability, with real GDP growth of between 2.5 and 5 per cent almost every year. She also said that the country’s economic performance since the pandemic has been excellent, and that the current government has a programme focused on attracting foreign direct investment and developing productive infrastructure, and has set itself the goal of improving the business climate.
In her speech, María Peña highlighted the “depth” of bilateral relations and assured that “there are many important projects for the future that Guatemala has to offer, whether in the field of infrastructure, energy or water”.
He also said that the companies that accompanied him believe in “a development model that favours more sustained growth, but also more sustainable and inclusive, with a balanced distribution of the benefits derived from investment and technology flows”.
Speaking to the Efe news agency, Peña referred to the importance of the free trade agreement signed by Central America and the European Union in 2012 under the Association Agreement (AA), and said: “There is still a lot of room for manoeuvre, a long way to go. We can still bet on a greater diversification of exports from Central America to the European Union”.
Guatemala is a priority country for Spain, supported by both Spanish and European funds, and could be a beneficiary of the FIEM fund of the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Tourism and AECID’s FONPRODE, the future Spanish Fund for Sustainable Development (FEDES).
