Caribbean & Central America - March 2016 (ISSN 1741-4458)

Costa Rica’s President Luis Guillermo Solís arrived in Guatemala on 18 February for a three-day state visit with his Guatemalan peer, Jimmy Morales. Solís is the first head of state to visit Morales since he assumed the presidency on 14 January (see back page). His decision to visit Guatemala was significant as, on 18 December, he suspended Costa Rica’s participation in political consultations of the Central American integration system (Sica) after Belize, Guatemala, and Nicaragua refused to allow Cuban migrants stranded in Costa Rica to transit through their respective countries en route to the US. Solís also blamed a lack of reforms on issues such as financial transparency for his country’s suspended participation.

In a speech at the Universidad de San Carlos in Guatemala City, President Solís said Sica’s member countries have a “unique opportunity” to “change direction” in the process of regional integration, but noted that the sub-region is in a “regressive phase” and is “no closer to integration than it was 15 years ago”. Solís argued that the sub-region should focus more resources on the most “urgent” problems including climate change and environmental disasters, pandemics, organised crime, and terrorism. He said that Sica must regain an “effective spirit” which “responds to the needs of our people and their aspirations for unity”. In more concrete terms, Solís said that Sica members should provide the secretary general with a “double commitment” - special political authority and reinforcement of special funding - in order to realise systemic reform, and argued that Guatemala and Costa Rica should serve as “motors” for this regional development. For his part, President Morales underlined the countries’ mutual interest in continuing dialogue regarding Sica integration and proclaimed that the Guatemalan people “want, respect, and admire” regional cooperation.

In addition to political discussions on Sica, Solís’ visit was also significant for bilateral economic integration. Solís visited Guatemala along with a trade delegation headed by representatives of Costa Rica’s foreign trade promotion office (Procomer) and the international trade minister, Alexander Mora, who met employees of Guatemala’s coordinating committee of agriculture, trade, industry, and finance (Cacif). The trade mission had more than 60 meetings with Guatemalan importers in which it discussed trade logistics, as well as import opportunities for a wide variety of Costa Rican products, from biodegradable cleaning products to broadband internet services. Bilateral trade approached US$1bn in 2015, almost half of Central America’s total trade volume. Of this, Costa Rican exports to Guatemala amounted to US$540m, while Guatemala sent US$366m of exports back the other way. In the services sector, the two countries generate more than 70% of Central America’s export value.

In terms of transport, Solís indicated possibilities for improving links between Costa Rica and Guatemala. Costa Rica and El Salvador are soon to open a ferry to reduce export and import costs, which Solís noted could serve as a model for better transport links with Guatemala. According to the Costa Rican government, the ferry to El Salvador will have the capacity to transport up to 100 trucks per day, three times per week, which will reduce the cost per truck from US$1500 to US$700.

Migrant programme updates
During Solís’ visit, the touchy subject of migration remained conspicuously off the bilateral agenda. On 12 January, Mexico, Costa Rica, and other Sica representatives launched a migrant relocation programme for Cubans stranded in Costa Rica, which coordinated flights to El Salvador, followed by a bus transfer to Mexico. On 22 February, the Costa Rican president’s office released an update on the programme which stated that a total of 11 flights carrying 1659 migrants had been completed and noted that the government expected approximately 770 more people to be transported between 26 and 30 February, to reach a total of 2500 migrants. These most recent flights have landed in El Salvador and in Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, which is located 10km from the US border.

• Boost for Morales

President Morales, a candidate distant from Guatemala’s discredited political establishment and elected on an anti-corruption pledge, has much to gain from the positive endorsements of regional counterparts. During his visit, President Solís called Guatemala “the older sister of Central America” and a “landmark” of democracy and anti-corruption in the sub-region, lauding the United Nations (UN)-backed International Commission against Impunity in Guatemala (Cicig). These statements come as rookie president Morales seeks to prove his anti-corruption credentials to the Guatemalan public.