Trade and Commercial Law Assessment - Honduras - Economic ...

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TRADE AND COMMERCIAL LAW ASSESSMENT DECEMBER 2004 HONDURAS Honduras continues to fall behind its neighbors in trade facilitation measures. More dynamic initiatives to decrease bureaucratic procedures and decentralize decision-making are required. Honduras is generally perceived to lag behind the rest of Central America in preparing its business and agricultural sector for CAFTA implementation. The private sector is attempting to fill this gap. Some of the most active of the private institutions are the 32 chambers of commerce and industry spread throughout the country. Their membership consists principally of small to medium-sized commercial enterprises representing all sectors of the economy. Although most are not involved in international trade today, they would like to enter the global market. The major chambers have established help desks to assist in establishing a business and act as intermediaries between the business and the government. They urge the adoption of streamlined procedures, decentralization of decision-making, and more technically competent public officials to decrease costs and make Honduran business more competitive. The chambers also host technical training with emphasis on quality control measures and are planning workshops by sector on the challenges and opportunities presented by CAFTA. Most of the private sector, and even the public sector, has no clear idea of CAFTA is and what it will require of them. Honduras has excellent laws for commercial practices but lacks adequate enforcement and implementation. Governmental officials either ignore or are unaware of the legal requirements, making it impossible for the trader to predict the cost or time it will take to complete a required procedure. Simplified procedures that are correctly and expeditiously followed would significantly reduce transaction costs. Problems are still encountered within the Customs Union, with individual countries imposing regulations and procedures that contradict regional policy. This indicates a lack of respect for the agreement and weakens the advancement and validity of the union. All of the member countries are implicated in this problem, because when one implements such an action, the affected party retaliates with its own policy. Countries must be encouraged to address such issues through the regional organizations for resolution. The Customs Union lacks private sector participation in policy and procedural development, leading to problems when new procedures are implemented. Although the regional brokers association has requested more participation in the development of the Customs Union, the association has not been invited to participate. Political influence is pervasive within the government, decreasing transparency in decisionmaking because of collusion and political pressure. This undue influence in the governmental process, including influence in the selection of personnel for key technical positions, has resulted in a low quality of governance. In part because democratic procedures are still developing, the public does not demand reforms and improvements. CIEMSA, the recently established committee of private and public sector representatives to modernize Customs and facilitate trade, is attempting to deal with some of the problems within that agency. The committee is headed by the Minister of Finance and is the process of establishing working groups to deal with specific areas of concern. CIEMSA will address corruption by looking at ways to simplify Customs processes, reduce excessive documentation, promote automation, and thereby limit opportunities for this behavior. XI-29
TRADE AND COMMERCIAL LAW ASSESSMENT DECEMBER 2004 HONDURAS CEIMSA will first seek to depoliticize the selection and promotion of Customs officers to increase professionalism throughout the ranks. CIEMSA will develop qualification standards to be used in each of these personnel actions and recommend continued private involvement in these processes. This approach, if successful, could then be used as a standard for other government agencies. Although there appears to be presidential support for this initiative, the required legal changes will be difficult to achieve because of the strength of the beneficiaries of the current system. To remain competitive, Honduras should consider revising its labor and environmental laws. The current legislation was adopted many years ago for the banana industry and was designed to protect workers. The restrictions it places on the employer in regard to such issues as termination and productivity need to be balanced with the needs of the industry to be competitive within the region and internationally. The strongest labor union is at Puerto Cortez, where the average cost to the port authority for each employee on its rolls is currently $3,900 per month, including all benefits. Customs Union Issues. Part of the effort to achieve regional harmonization and integration has been the development of a regional Customs Union. The evolution of the Central American Customs Union is now at a critical stage. The primary benefits of the union thus far accrue to Central American merchandise, making the union relatively less beneficial to Honduras than the other members because Honduras has the lowest trade volume with its neighbors. However, a customs union could result in significant benefits to Honduras through increased trade flows through its port, and enhanced economic power through the union as a result of economies of scale, compared with the economic fragmentation of the individual countries. To achieve the 2005 goal of implementing a real Customs Union in regard to international arriving from or exported to countries outside Central America, the following crucial and complicated issues must be addressed: XI-30 goods ♦ Lack of a uniform international trade policy among the Central American countries. Free trade agreements (FTA) are negotiated on an individual country basis. Some of the five CAFTA countries have FTAs with Panama, Chile, Canada, and Taiwan. Although the agreements with the same country have identical Rules of Origin, not all of the countries in the region have such agreements. This lack of uniformity in tariff treatments complicates the integration process. ♦ Tariffs and taxes are not harmonized within Central America for goods imported from outside the CACM. For example, medicines are free of duty in some countries while subject to 5 percent duty in others. The duty on dairy products in Costa Rica is 65 percent, in Honduras 35 percent. Value-added taxes also vary. ♦ The organization of Customs within the Customs Union has not been defined. Will Customs be a regional organization? Will officers at the outer borders continue to work for their national administrations? Will officers at the inner borders be eliminated? ♦ When movement towards the Customs Union was reactivated and implemented several years ago, SPS issues were not addressed. SPS requirements vary significantly between countries, and pests and plagues present in some countries have been eradicated in others.
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