The Exporter Chain (Cadexco) held the traditional Export Effort Award 2020 this past week, in which it highlighted the work of the most outstanding private Tico companies of the year. The President of the group, Laura Bonilla, stressed that, despite the inconveniences generated by the COVID-19 Pandemic, the export sector achieved a growth of 5%.
“This year has been difficult, we have operated with uncertainty due to the Pandemic, the blockades and the economic imbalance,” Bonilla reminded the attendees, among whom was President Carlos Alvarado.
Bonilla took the opportunity to reiterate to the President the importance of continuing to support the measures that strengthen the sector and which managed to maintain, almost entirely, the existing jobs. “We still need to apply the proposals of the economic reactivation agenda that we previously delivered to be more competitive,” she reiterated.
Words of the President
For his part, Alvarado thanked the sector for the generation of employment that this sector entails and stressed that, although this has been the constant, the context of this year makes this contribution more significant, especially considering that growth is estimated -4.5% for this year.
Alvarado affirmed to be aware of this sector, especially in view of the difficulties experienced globally, and took the opportunity to make an appeal to the different socio-political actors. “Whoever wants it to be easy should go look for something else. Good things cost. The good achievements of Costa Rica have cost sacrifice, you have to be afraid of changing that way of being (…), we lived very comfortable from the legacy of other generations, it is over. It’s time to get to work now,” Alvarado said.
Defending the sector’s interest
The new Minister of Foreign Trade, Andrés Valenciano, also participated in the activity, taking the opportunity to express to the sector that he will seek to defend their interests, starting with the implementation of the regulations of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).
“I have assumed that commitment, of the implementation of the practices of the OECD, as a personal challenge since I began,” said Valenciano. Among the winners of the activity, the companies Boston Scientific, Del Monte, Centenario and the company Bioesfera Honestly Natural, also stood out, in the SME category.
