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ABU DHABI, 29th March, 2023 (WAM) — The proposed Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (CEPA) between Costa Rica and the UAE will bring benefits to both peoples, a senior Costa Rican official told the Emirates News Agency, WAM. economic and social interests.
Manuel Tovar Rivera, Minister of Foreign Trade of Costa Rica and President of PROCOMER, who is on an official visit to the UAE, said: Target” .
“As Costa Rica has an ambitious agenda to expand foreign trade, trade and investment relations with the UAE have become a major interest of this administration. The UAE is our top priority in expanding relations with the Middle East,” the minister emphasized.
As WAM reported on Tuesday, Rivera and Minister of State for Foreign Trade Dr. Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi signed a joint statement, marking the start of preliminary talks between the two countries to establish CEPA.
Trade and investment flows between the two countries continue to grow, with non-oil trade reaching AED 216 million (US$ 58.7 million) in 2022, a 19 percent increase over 2021.
The UAE has so far signed four CEPAs with India, Israel, Indonesia and Turkey, and more such agreements with other countries are expected to be signed in the coming days.
The Costa Rican minister said the two countries’ proposed CEPA would also help strengthen cooperation between Central America and the Middle East.
50 Free Trade Agreements
He noted that the Costa Rican economy had successfully diversified over the past three decades.
“Additionally, we are diversifying our trading partners from neighboring regions to other regions, especially Europe and Asia. This is largely achieved through our free trade agreements (FTAs), which are more than 50 preferential access to trading partners, which together account for two-thirds of global GDP,” the minister explained.
Rivera noted that there is great potential for bilateral agricultural trade, which would benefit both Costa Rica and the UAE.
“Costa Rica offers a wide range of agricultural products that may be of interest to the UAE. We are the world’s number one exporter of fresh pineapples and pineapple juice, and we are also one of the largest exporters of bananas,” he noted.
As Costa Rica also exports many other food products, “the proposed CEPA with the UAE will increase trade opportunities, help establish supply chains between our producers and buyers, and guarantee strong trade flows based on preferential access for our products.” For interested Free zones in the UAE could be an important option for Costa Rican companies exploring such opportunities,” Rivera said.
sustainable trade
The minister noted that both Costa Rica and the UAE share a vision to promote sustainable trade.
As trading partners who share the values of sustainable and inclusive development, environmental protection and multilateralism, he suggested that the UAE and Costa Rica could jointly promote different initiatives at the multilateral level.
As the UAE hosts the 13th World Trade Organization (WTO) Ministerial Conference (MC13) in Abu Dhabi in February 2024, Costa Rica will be pleased to support the UAE in any trade-related initiative aimed at promoting cooperation on global climate action, Rivera assertion.
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