Guatemala City, by Daniel Coromac -AGN- President Alejandro Giammattei, during his speech at the fourth meeting of the National Council for Urban and Rural Development -Conadur-, highlighted that his administration has adequately managed the economy to ensure stability.
The current government dealt with the severe impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to this emergency that affected the entire world, Guatemala faced several challenges. Working from home, digitalizing processes and health care were promoted during those years.
Due to the impact of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the world fell into an economic downturn. Nonetheless, Guatemala stood firm in the middle of the turmoil. As a result, the inflation rate, as of the end of August 2023, is 4.47%.
During his speech, the president stated, “Today, I can proudly say that we are leaving a country a little better than we found it.
With a stable economic situation and a lower cost of living than in all countries, some countries now have three digits of inflation.”
International price spike
President Giammattei also confirmed the international price increase. He noted the influence of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine as the war destabilized fertilizer prices and the global grain supply. He stated, ” There is an increase in international prices, but we are not responsible for the fact that Russia has invaded Ukraine, and today, the world has been destabilized for fertilizers, cereals, and grains.”
During the Conadur meeting, the president encouraged the members to work for the country in the following manner: “We have a lot to move forward. This country has a lot of things, and one of the bases and the support of this policy to make the country develop is here, in this council.”
Actions for the economy
The Government of Guatemala promoted strategies such as Guatemala Moving Forward to recover Guatemala’s economy in a challenging situation. It is an inter-institutional agreement signed to improve the attraction of foreign investments. The ministries of Economy, Finance, Foreign Affairs, the Bank of Guatemala, Municipality of Guatemala, Guatemalan Exporters Association -Agexport- and the Foundation for the Development of Guatemala -Fundesa- are involved.
As a result, actions were taken to strengthen the capacities of Guatemalan human resources, such as English courses and skills certification. Likewise, a dialogue with business chambers from different countries was promoted in investment attraction. Infrastructure work has also been carried out to stimulate and encourage investor confidence. The country brand Guatemala, Amazing and Unstoppable, has been established in tourism, and Guatemala’s tourist destinations are promoted.
Technological tools have been implemented to improve trade as part of this effort, such as the Foreign Trade Incident Reporting Platform -RICE-.
