Support to the Government of Guatemala in their Civil Society Outreach Program concurrent to the DR-CAFTA negotiatios
Overview
The Guatemalan government’s CSOP strategy stressed informal talks and conferences by their own negotiators and government officials. Within this context, CARANA was asked to provide support to the Ministry of Economy in carrying out their CSOP in support of the CAFTA negotiations. After an initial visit in February of 2003, and a follow up visit in April of 2003, CARANA staff provided several speakers in support of the Government’s program through to the end of 2003, when a new government took office and changed their CSOP strategy. During the period of CARANA’s assistance to the Government of Guatemala (GOG), the country’s CSOP program faced several difficulties due to changes in the staff at the Ministry, including the replacement of the lead negotiator twice during the negotiating process, and government elections held in November of 2003 during the end of the negotiating rounds. Counterparts
The Ministry of Economy in Guatemala Timeframe
February 2003 through July 2003 Activities
The major CSOP activities in Guatemala supported by the LAC Trade Project are listed below: - February: Initial meetings with USAID/Guatemala and U.S. Embassy to inform on and kick off the project.
- April: Follow up meetings with USAID and the GOG to review the GOG’s requests for support in implementing their CSOP and coordinate with G-CAP on the LAC Trade CSOP in the region.
- May 5-7, 2003: Dr. David Lewis conducted several talks on CAFTA with labor, university and business groups in Guatemala. Dr. Lewis also worked with the Ministry of Economy on its CSOP strategy and with G-CAP to follow-up on specific requests made by them on CSOP issues in the region.
- CARANA / AGEXPRONT (USAID), Conference on CAFTA and its implications for Guatemala by Dr. David Lewis, May 5 – 7, 2003.
- CARANA Consultant, Ambassador Luis Lauredo, met with several civil society groups to discuss CAFTA and the FTAA, June 30 through July 2, 2003.
- CARANA / MINECO (USAID), Dr. Richard Feinberg spoke on the subject of CAFTA and labor to several groups during the week of August 18, 2003.
- CARANA, Enrique Román (Chile), Oscar Beltrán (México), y Jorge Alfaro (El Salvador) spoke to several groups on the impact of free trade agreements on SMEs. Each speaker shared the experiences of their respective country, week of November 30, 2003.
- June 30 – July 2, 2003: Ambassador Luis Lauredo went to Guatemala under LAC Trade and spoke to civil society groups and several media groups on general CAFTA and FTAA topics.
Results
Changes in the negotiating team during the year, including the replacement of the lead negotiator twice during the negotiation phase, and the eventual change in government after elections in November of 2003, made this the most challenging of the Central American countries to support. Many of the records necessary to develop a full listing of the activities carried out under the Government’s CSOP program throughout the year were lost after the change in government. For example, during the negotiations, the lead negotiator and members of the negotiating team held almost daily meetings with civil society groups, however this calendar of activities was not available in 2004 when CARANA staff members requested it. However, based on the information that was gathered from a variety of sources, it was evident that the Guatemalan government did carry out an extensive CSOP in the country with a strong focus on rural areas. Relevant Documents
Download this page in PDF format here.
A.4.4.1-3 Guatemala David Lewis Speaker Schedule.pdf
A.4.4.1-4 Guatemala Lewis Presentation - CAFTA y Guatemala.pdf
A.4.4.1-5 Guatemala Luis Lauredo Schedule.pdf
A.4.4.1-6 Guatemala Feinberg - CAFTA and Labor.pdf
A.4.4.1-7 Guatemala Roman - SMEs Chile Experience.pdf
A.4.4.1-8 Guatemala Alfaro – SME presentation.pdf
A.4.4.1-9 Guatemala Beltran - SME Mexican Experience.pdf
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Project Activities 
