Eric Jacobstein, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Central America in the Office of Western Hemisphere Affairs, concluded a visit to Guatemala on Tuesday to learn about the various advances of the “Central America Forward” initiative.
Jacobstein held meetings with different sectors and public and private actors, in which he reiterated the importance of the interest of foreign investors to establish themselves in Guatemala, but it is necessary to advance a program of economic laws in Congress.
CONTENT FOR SUBSCRIBERS
This is the conversation with Free Press:
What is the reason for your visit to Guatemala?
I am leading a team focused on promoting investment in Guatemala. It is a team under the “Centroamérica Adelante” initiative that was created by the Vice President of the United States, Kamala Harris, and the idea is to promote investment in this country.
What results do you get?
We are focused on infrastructure and have held many meetings. For example, we were in the Congress of the Republic, talking about the importance of laws related to competition, infrastructure, ports -system- and also the law on public-private partnerships.
Laws like these are critical to increasing international investment, from the United States and from all countries around the world.
CONTENT FOR SUBSCRIBERS
The rule of law is also important and we are focused on supporting the rule of law, and that is why we care so much about the election of the judges – Supreme Court of Justice and the Courts of Appeals – which will take place in the following months. This is so that the process is fair, legal and that the people elected have a commitment to the rule of law.
Is it to provide legal certainty to the country?
Exactly. When an investor from the United States or other countries is thinking of investing, they want a stable rule of law, and that is why there must be judges who are committed to the rule of law.
“We are focused on infrastructure and we have held many meetings. For example, we were in the Congress of the Republic, talking about the importance of laws that have to do with competition, infrastructure, ports -system- and also with the law of public-private partnerships”
Eric Jacobstein, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Central America in the Bureau of Western Hemisphere Affairs
What follow-up will be provided on this issue?
From here in Washington, the international community… we are all committed to accompanying the process, supporting the country and having a free, fair and transparent process.
On the economic agenda, what initiatives can be consolidated in the near future??
We are focused on infrastructure, basically, because streets, highways, ports, and airports are vital, and it is no surprise to anyone who comes to La Aurora International Airport that a lot needs to be done to improve it, and as the U.S. government, we have funded pre-feasibility studies, so we continue to support infrastructure projects.
CONTENT FOR SUBSCRIBERS
We had a meeting with the mayor of Guatemala City, Ricardo Quiñónez, and we talked about the metro and the aerometer, so I think there is a lot of interest and expectation for several projects in Guatemala, but we have to see some achievements in Congress; above all, in the loans -portfolio- that the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) and the World Bank (WB) are proposing, which are good for the country, but also for investors, who want to invest in electrification and infrastructure, among other areas.
What was the diagnosis you received on the current state of the infrastructure?
From the government, we receive the message that it is focused on infrastructure throughout the country, rural infrastructure, highways and the subway, so we see the commitment of President Bernardo Arévalo. The message from the United States government and the international community is unity between the private sector, the Congress of the Republic and the current Government, so that everyone tries to promote a Guatemala in which everyone wants to invest even more.
What progress has been made on the High-Level Dialogue Programme at this time?
The visit is a follow-up to the High Level Dialogue Program that was launched in March. For example, we saw progress in the pre-feasibility studies and we are working on the admissibility for producers to export their avocados to the U.S. For us, there is no small thing, but we have to work on all lines of effort.
CONTENT FOR SUBSCRIBERS
Which initiatives are currently underway and what projects could be implemented?
Regarding Vice President Harris’s “Central America Forward” initiative, we already have US$5.2 billion invested in Guatemala, El Salvador and Honduras.
There are many investments and projects, for example, Yazaki -North America- which is a Japanese company that is now working in Guatemala. And we have the pre-feasibility studies for infrastructure, so we are working in many areas.
Under this government administration, can any project be implemented?
Yes. Now the country has a historic “chance” and in recent months we have seen a visit by President Arévalo to Washington, meetings with the president -Joe Biden-, with the vice president -Kamala Harris-, a visit by the Secretaries of State, who had not been to Guatemala since 2013, so there is a lot of interest and an opportunity at this time.
That is why we are promoting unity among all sectors, so that there is more investment and more economic growth that includes everyone, but especially the indigenous community. We also had a meeting with some leaders.
CONTENT FOR SUBSCRIBERS
So, I think if all sectors can come together, we are here to be a better partner to promote investment in the coming months.
From Washington, is there confidence in the country?
Absolutely.
What is the next step for the High-Level Dialogue Programme?
I am in the State Department, but there are representatives from other agencies such as the International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) and we have many other agencies that have tools that can make projects and loans.
We also have a team strengthening links with many actors here in the country, with the private sector, with the national government and local governments and in the Congress of the Republic, so I think that the links will be very important to do more jointly with the Guatemalan government.
#Laws #critical #attracting #investment #U.S #world
