*Costa Rica’s President
Rodrigo Chaves has announced that his government will cut import tariffs on rice from 36% to 5% in order to reduce the cost of rice for consumers. While he has pledged that small rice producers will receive subsidies, technical training and other types of assistance, local agriculture lobbies such as Cámara Nacional de Agricultura y Agroindustria (CNAA) have expressed concerns warning of the impact this would have on domestic production and the more than 33,000 direct and indirect jobs which the sector provides. President Chaves’ announcement is in line with plans that he announced upon taking office in May to tackle the spiralling cost of living, with inflation running at an annual rate of 8.71% in May 2022 – its highest level in the past decade.
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