Bridges Weekly Trade News Digest • Volume 13 • Number 3 • 28th January 2009

EU, Central America Aim for Free Trade Deal This Year

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The European Union and six Central American countries are meeting this week for the sixth round of negotiations aimed at establishing a comprehensive agreement on lowering trade barriers and increasing political dialogue between the two regions, the EU said on Friday.

The EU also announced a £15 million aid package intended to bolster regional institutions and strengthen the voices of civil society actors in Central American countries of Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama.

European Trade Commissioner Catherine Ashton said that officials will strive to wrap up negotiations on the far-reaching ‘association agreement’ before the end of 2009.

“With the right mix of energy and political commitment we should be in a position to conclude the Association Agreement between the EU and Central America this year,” Ashton said.

“I am committed to do everything possible in order to achieve this.”

More than 300 delegates and civil society actors from Central America will attend the negotiations in Brussels this week. Both private and public sector representatives will be in attendance at the EU-CA Private Sector Forum focusing on agriculture and agribusiness sectors, as well as business opportunities that exist for Central America.

The meeting will be somewhat overshadowed by the ongoing economic crisis, which has taken a toll in both regions.

“This year promises to be both very eventful and full of challenge,” Benita Ferrero-Waldner, European Commissioner for External Relations and Neighbourhood Policy, said before the negotiations began. “We have to deal with an unprecedented economic crisis and to avoid any protectionist tendencies… in this specific context, the European Union underlines its commitment to greater stability and prosperity in Central America.”

The negotiations toward an association agreement were begun in mid-2007.

ICTSD reporting; “CentAm, EU Arrange Association,” PRENSA LATINA, 23 January 2009; “W-2008/6: The European Union and Central America: negotiating and interregional agreement,” BEATRIZ VELIZ ARGUETA, 10 January 2008.