Cuba aims to create joint partnerships with the countries of the Caribbean that promote joint development, respecting culture, history and taking advantage of common factors, according to Cuban officials who offered a press conference in the framework of the Senior Officials Segment Of the Association of Caribbean States (ACS), in which they called for increased exchange among countries in the region as part of a strategic alliance. "With this event we are demonstrating to the world that we are an important vital area," said José Chaple Hernández, Director of Trade Policy for Latin America and the Caribbean at the Ministry of Foreign Trade and Foreign Investment (MINCEX).
Chaple said that the ACS is an important mechanism for its members and constitutes an important point of contact for the Caribbean zone. According to the official, the Agreement Establishing the organization, created in 1994, seeks to promote consultation, cooperation and joint action among the territories of the area. Cooperation was precisely the key issue at yesterday's meeting, he said, where projects related to climate change and inter-Caribbean transport were presented.
In the case of trade, the ACS countries are the main partners of Cuba within the Latin American region, and globally represent 20% of the foreign trade of the Greater Antilles. Also, said Chaple, there are nations like Venezuela and Mexico that are among the ten main trading partners of Cuba; And an actor who took power in 2016 was Trinidad and Tobago, he added. For the Director of Commercial Policy for Latin America and the Caribbean of the MINCEX, this trade exchange has been able to be channeled through the agreements signed with the various countries in the area.
Referring to the cooperation, the official said that the main destination lies precisely within the ACS, where some 31,000 Cuban workers cohabit, a large percentage of them in the health sector. He also commented that more than 21 000 students from countries of the ACS have graduated in Cuba, and about 3 000 are studying here.
"In the case of construction, the most recent example of collaboration was the inauguration of the Argyle International Airport in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, which was attended by the vice president of the State Council, Salvador Valdes Mesa," he said.
Chaple noted that Havana pays particular attention to its historical characteristics and the natural disasters it has faced. At present there are 700 Cuban collaborators working there, and our island has already taken the first steps for future cooperation with the new government, led by Jovenel Moise. "It is not about competing, it is about sharing"
"We are all in the same geographical area and it is a space of great economic importance, because it is a north-south link, where not only goods but also people pass through. This is a strategic region," said Déborah Rivas Saavedra, general director of Foreign Investment of MINCEX. The official emphasized that the economy should not be seen in the territory with a competitive approach, but of cooperation. "It's about taking advantage of common advantages and building economic alliances," he said. Tourism, a sector with a high strategic in the region, we treat it as a shared, not as competition, expressed and in that regard said that it reached four million visitors in a year.
In reference to joint growth, Rivas added that "by having special areas of development in the area, we think we should make a leap, the 22 member countries and the partners, together." "Cuba in particular," he said, "has developed a regulatory framework that allows partners in the Greater Caribbean to seek agreements to create mutual benefits."
We have signed agreements with the countries of the Wider Caribbean basin, and investors can enjoy tax incentives set by our nation. Rivas reaffirmed Cuba's interest in increasing cooperation with the community and commended the deployment of strategic alliances within the framework of the ACS. On the other hand, he explained that Havana is totally clear about its development goals, long and medium term. With foreign investment we are working on development plans, with well-identified elements.
He also recalled that we are a country economically blocked by the United States and the extraterritorial effects of this illegal policy affect our relationship with foreign partners. These are objective conditions that impact and do not allow us to attract more foreign investment. He also argued that there are other internal problems, such as the lack of training of some of our businessmen, but stressed that "our problems are not solved at a stroke, with the signing of a foreign investment law. We must enhance the capacities of our entrepreneurs ".
The ZEDM: a vehicle for promoting cooperation
These meetings in the space of the ACS have a key importance in the regional integration because they allow the exchange and the dialogue, emphasized Oscar Pérez Oliva Fraga, director of Business evaluation of the Special Zone of Development Mariel (ZEDM). He recalled that the ZEDM was created in September of 2013 as a long-term visionary plan where they develop industrial, logistical, port and commercial activities and projects with the objective of locating the Caribbean in a strategic commercial place, while supporting the Regional integration and with the rest of the world.
The official said that so far ZEDM has 24 users and three of the most important are members of the ACS, highlighting Mexico and Panama. He said that the area, which has 465.4 km2, currently has 11 investors, including Cuba, and so far, 966 million dollars in investment have been approved. He also said that of the 24 users of the ZEDM, eight are operating and generating 4073 direct jobs.
He called the area an interesting vehicle for Caribbean countries to accede to Cuba's cooperation agreements with the rest of the countries of Latin America and the world. The ZEDM approach provides an opportunity to strengthen interregional links and with the rest of the world's states. The container terminal is also a great opportunity to promote merchandise exchange and maritime connectivity, he said.
According to Pérez Oliva, the ZEDM has incorporated new projects such as a Portuguese company of design, engineering and construction of materials, a Panama company of logistics services, a Spanish company of automotive paints, a mixed company of logistics services focused on Tourism between AT Comercial and Iberostar and a Brazilian also of logistics services.