Costa Rica President Rodrigo Chaves announced on July 8 that Costa Rica would formally initiate the negotiation process for the country’s incorporation into The Pacific Alliance. The Pacific Alliance is an initiative of regional integration comprised of Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru and was established in 2011.
The President instructed the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship, Arnoldo André, and the Minister of Foreign Trade, Manuel Tovar, to formally request the initiation of the work required through the Pro-Tempore Presidency (PPT) of the Alliance, which Mexico currently holds.
Costa Rica has been a Candidate Observer State since 2012 and has closely followed the work of the bloc, which proposes a modern approach to Latin American regional integration.
In addition, the Pacific Alliance includes different innovative and relevant areas of work for capacity building in the member countries, allowing greater use of trade and investment opportunities.
“What we want is to generate investment capacity to create jobs that pay well in the formal sector for the population; and, on the other hand, we want to lower the cost of living for Costa Ricans because money is hard to earn, and we have to make it affordable,” said President Chaves.
The Minister of Foreign Trade, Manuel Tovar, stressed the importance of deepening regional integration.
“There is no doubt that one of the pending issues in Latin America is to build a robust and modern regional integration scheme. We understand that the Pacific Alliance is an innovative and powerful model of regional integration, capable of energizing the economy, generating jobs, increasing exports, encouraging the attraction of investments, and fostering cooperation with four significant Latin American economies,” he added.
Furthermore, The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship highlighted the value of the Pacific Alliance’s benefits beyond the commercial sphere.
“A special feature that distinguishes the Pacific Alliance is the structured and continuous work it deploys in several key areas. These include culture, education, and cooperation. For this reason, we are excited to work on a project that offers great opportunities for Costa Rica.”
