Ministry of SMEs and Startups-Ministry of Foreign Affairs Seek to Strengthen Economic and Infrastructure Cooperation with 7 Central American Countries

The Ministry of SMEs and Startups (Minister Oh Young-joo) and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Minister Cho Tae-yeol) co-hosted the “2024 Korea-Central America Trade and Investment Forum” in Seoul on Thursday, the 28th, inviting high-ranking officials from seven Central American countries and key Central American development cooperation partners: the United States, Mexico, and Spain. The forum was attended by approximately 150 people from related organizations, including the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, the Korea International Trade Association, the National IT Industry Promotion Agency, the Overseas Infrastructure and Urban Development Support Corporation, the Korea Resources Corporation, and the Korea Federation of SMEs, as well as companies interested in advancing into Central America.

※ This forum is an event linked to the “4th Korea-Central America Special Roundtable” to be held on Friday, November 29, and is attended by seven Central American countries (Guatemala, Belize, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica’s Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs; Panama’s Vice Minister of Trade; Dominican Republic’s Director General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; and Dominican Republic’s Ambassador

to Korea). In his opening remarks, Vice Minister of SMEs and Startups Kim Sung-seop emphasized the importance of Central America as a production and trade hub for the Americas, and expressed his expectations that Central America, with its abundant resources and large young population, and Korea, with its cutting-edge technologies such as semiconductors and AI, will become partners who will create synergy effects based on their complementary industrial structures.

In his opening remarks, Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Jeong Byeong-won evaluated that the Central American region is receiving attention as an attractive market with growth potential, including its geographical advantage as a transportation and logistics hub, expansion of infrastructure investment, and increase in young consumer population. He said that Korea will continue to narrow the economic distance with Central America based on the conclusion of the Korea-Central America Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and joining the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (CABEI), a multilateral financial institution.

※ Korea-Central America FTA (effective March 2021): Signed with 5 Central American countries (Panama, Nicaragua, Honduras, Costa Rica, El Salvador) / Guatemala signed the accession protocol in January 2024.

In his congratulatory remarks, Costa Rican Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Alejandro Solano evaluated Guatemala’s signing of the Korea-Central America FTA accession protocol in January of this year, and expressed his hope that Korea-Central America economic cooperation will deepen in various fields such as infrastructure, digital, energy, and resources, and that Korean companies with innovative technologies and capabilities will further expand their advance into Central America.

In the first session (Expanding Korea-Central America Trade and Investment Cooperation), Central American figures, the Korea International Trade Association, the Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency, the US PCA, and others participated to discuss ways to expand trade and investment between Korea and Central America in major areas of interest, including automobiles and parts, electrical and electronic products, building materials, and medical devices, amid the acceleration of global supply chain reorganization.

※ PCA (Partnership for Central America) is a non-profit organization established to promote public-private cooperation between the U.S. and Central America.

In the 2nd and 3rd sessions (Strengthening Cooperation for Sustainable Development in the Central American Region), Central American figures, the National IT Industry Promotion Agency, the Overseas Infrastructure and Urban Development Corporation, the Korea Resources Corporation, and the Korea Federation of SMEs participated, introducing major cooperation projects and matters of interest, and exchanging opinions on ways for Korean companies to expand their presence in

Central America in sectors such as information and communication technology, infrastructure, energy and resources, and SMEs. This forum is evaluated to have been a place where high-ranking figures from seven Central American countries and our businesspeople gathered to share understanding of the Central American region, which is emerging as a new market in the rapidly changing international environment, and to seek mutually beneficial cooperation in various sectors such as information and communication, infrastructure, energy and resources, and SMEs.

Editor. Hong Se-yeong