Nicaragua Network

1. IMF mission recommends improving productivity and investing in education
2. Maduro makes lightening visit to Managua
3. Massive planting of windbreakers announced
4. Citizens participate in earthquake-tsunami drill
5. Over 2,000 jobs lost with expiration of TPL
6. Social briefs: water and sewers, primary school computers
7. ALBA treaty on medicines forwarded to National Assembly for approval
8. Copies of Zapatera sculptures will be placed at sites of originals

1. IMF mission recommends improving productivity and investing in education

Min Zhu, Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), paid a visit to Nicaragua from Mar. 3 – Mar. 5, leaving behind a delegation headed by Przemek Gajdeczkawhich completed its evaluation on Mar. 11. Min met with President Daniel Ortega and other government officials as well as with business leaders, economists, and public policy experts. Nicaragua does not currently have a program with the IMF (the last one ended in 2011) because, as explained by former Foreign Minister Francisco Aguirre Sacasa, “A country enters into a program with the Fund when its economy faces serious problems. And ours has for years been managed with prudence and responsibility which are reflected in good economic indicators.”

Before leaving Nicaragua, Min Zhu said that Nicaragua’s “management during the 2008-9 financial crisis was very positive, since it stimulated the economy when the crisis was at its worst and returned to sustainable policies as export markets recuperated.” He went on to say, “Nicaragua’s economic growth has exceeded that of the other countries of the region [1.2% for Latin America and 2.3% for Central America] and its social indicators have improved, although reducing poverty continues to be one of the challenges facing Nicaragua.” Participants in meetings with Min Zhu added that he also highlighted the tenuous state of the economies of some developed countries, low levels of investment in Europe, and a lack of growth in world trade after the economic crisis and the effects these could have on growth in small economies like that of Nicaragua.  Nicaragua, he noted, must invest more in education and innovation in order to attract foreign investment. The savings resulting from the drop in petroleum prices can be used to fund such investments, he suggested.

Gajdeczka said at the conclusion of his visit that “economic performance is good and perspectives are favorable.” He noted that the country grew 4.5% in 2014 with “controlled inflation” at 6.5% with an expected growth for 2015 of 4.6% with a reduced inflation rate of 6% due to the drop in the price of petroleum. He highlighted the fact that the government is focusing its social spending in education and infrastructure which he said were “crucial for growth and the future of the country.” He also said that Nicaragua faces challenges in such areas as the strengthening of public finances, modernization of its financial system, and increasing productivity. He said that increasing productivity was the longest term challenge and the one of the greatest importance for the country.

IMF officials also met with the political opposition. Former treasury minister and presidential candidate Eduardo Montealegre told Zhu Min and Przemek Gajdeczka that in Nicaragua institutional weakness and the lack of respect for the rule of law were competing with the economic attractions that are offered investors resulting in a “rapid deceleration in total investment.” To increase investor confidence, he said, “We must have respect for the law, the constitution, and the rights of the private sector.” (Informe Pastran, Mar. 4, 5, 6, 10, 14; El Nuevo Diario, Mar. 12; Radio La Primerisima, Mar. 11; La Prensa, Mar. 6, 7)

2. Maduro makes lightening visit to Managua

In what was called a “lightening visit,” Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro came to Nicaragua on Mar. 13 in time for an evening rally at the Plaza of the Revolution in Managua where President Daniel Ortega honored him with the Order of Augusto Sandino.  Ortega said that it was “an honor to have you with us at this moment when the Yankee wants to attack the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela.” He stated, “We give this honor to Nicolas and to the fierce people of Venezuela.”

Maduro said, referring to the sanctions against Venezuela recently announced by the United States, “No one can take our country to war, not today nor in years to come.” He said he was sure that the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) would strongly defend Venezuela through diplomacy. He added, “We never have been and never will be a star in the US flag; here we have our own flag, our own symbols.” 

In related news, on Mar. 16, Maria Rubiales, Nicaragua’s representative to the United Nations, told a UN forum that “The charges President Obama is brandishing are absurd. How can Venezuela constitute an unusual and extraordinary threat to the United States?” She stated, “We cannot permit an attack against a sister republic because today it is Venezuela and tomorrow it can be any other country as history has shown us.” She said that diplomacy must be used in all the forums of Latin American and Caribbean integration to denounce the stance taken by Washington.  (El Nuevo Diario, Mar. 14; La Prensa, Mar. 14; Radio La Primerisima, Mar. 14, 16)

3. Massive planting of windbreakers announced

Organizations of farmers in the Departments of Leon and Chinandega agreed last week that the problem of the continuing dust storms must be resolved with a massive reforestation project in the agricultural areas of the two departments. Some seventy growers of peanuts and sugar cane met with Minister of the Environment and Natural Resources Juana Argeñal and Vice-Minister Roberto Araquistain, Director of the National Forestry Institute William Schwartz, and the mayors of Leon, Telica, Malpaisillo, Quezalguaque and Nagarote.

Juan Antonio Mayorga of the Union of Agricultural Producers of Nicaragua (UPANIC) said, “We are ready to support this plan of action… because we back all initiatives that favor growers, processers, businesspeople and the environment.” Schwartz announced, “We have enough seeds of eucalyptus, acacia, and sardinillo [probably Tecoma stans, also known as yellow elder] to establish nurseries and distribute plants to farmers in Leon and Chinandega. We are in time because between now and June we will have the nurseries established and awaiting the rainy season and we can proceed with the action plan to fight deforestation in farming areas.” Argeñal said, “We are going to reactivate the network of windbreakers that were planted in the years of the Sandinista Revolution and that for many reasons have disappeared” as well as promote values of conservation of trees.

The farmers said they would commit to planting 300,000 trees in the zone but they asked authorities to crack down on those who cut down the trees for firewood to sell in the towns and cities. Leon Mayor Roger Gurdian said that the windbreaker network was being revived through a public-private partnership with shared responsibility. Residents of the Department of Leon had complained that the devastating dust storms of recent weeks were the result of farming practices that included chopping down all the trees in the region. Abdel Garcia of the Humboldt Center in Managua said that planting windbreakers is part of the solution but the problem is not the wind because there will always be wind. The problem, he said, is the dust from the erosion produced by wide extent of intensive agriculture. He added, “Besides the windbreakers, what has to be restored is order in the agricultural production of the area.”

The wind and dust have damaged homes throughout the Pacific region of the country. Government spokesperson Rosario Murillo said that the damage demonstrates the vulnerability and fragility of the construction of the houses reflecting the fact that Nicaragua is still struggling against poverty. She said, “We have 146 neighborhoods and communities, 829 families, with 4,974 people affected. Twenty-six houses have been severely damaged and the roofs of 800 houses have collapsed. Churches have been affected along with five schools and two health centers.” She said that the government’s Plan Roof was being activated in those areas and other needs of the families were being met. (El Nuevo Diario, Mar. 14; La Prensa, Mar. 10, 14; Radio La Primerisima, Mar. 12; Informe Pastran, Mar. 11)

4. Citizens participate in earthquake-tsunami drill

On Mar. 16, as many as two million Nicaraguans participated in a disaster drill to evaluate response readiness of the population to a disaster similar to an earthquake measuring 7.4 on the Richter scale off the coast of Masachapa, Department of Managua, followed by a tsunami. The National System for the Prevention, Mitigation, and Attention to Disasters (SINAPRED) coordinated the activities and government agencies and community organizations were mobilized along with students in the nation’s schools. Government spokeswoman Rosario Murillo reminded citizens that Nicaragua is vulnerable to many different types of calamities, including floods, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes. Managua Municipal Secretary General Fidel Moreno explained that, in the case of an earthquake above 7.0 on the Richter scale, sirens would be activated in 83 coastal communities to warn of a possible tsunami. For example, for this drill, three sirens were activated in the beach community of San Rafael del Sur and families evacuated to eight previously established safe zones.

Many people participated willingly but others showed aggravation when they arrived at government offices to find them closed due to the drill. Next month will be the first anniversary of a 6.2 earthquake that shook the Pacific region of the country and caused some damage. Each week a number of earthquakes are reported off the coast of Nicaragua in the Pacific, including tremblers of 5.1, 4.5, 4.1, 3.8 and 3.4 last week. (Radio La Primerisima, Mar. 14, 16; El Nuevo Diario, Mar. 16; Informe Pastran, Mar. 11)

5. Over 2,000 jobs lost with expiration of TPL

More than 2,000 jobs have been lost in Nicaragua’s Free Trade Zones (FTZ) in the last two months due to the expiration of Tariff Preference Level (TPL) provisions for Nicaragua at the end of 2014, according to Alvaro Baltodano, presidential delegate at the Nicaraguan Agency for the Promotion of Investment (ProNicaragua). TPL permitted Nicaragua to export duty free to the US garments made with cloth or thread from outside the countries party to the DR-CAFTA trade agreement of 2005. The preferences were set up to last ten years and ended on Dec. 31^st. Baltodano added, “But we are working to recuperate those investments in other areas.”

Dean Garcia, director of the Nicaraguan Textile and Garment Industry Association, said that Levi’s, which produced Dockers pants in Nicaragua, “left for Asia because they could not compete without TPL and that affected three factories here.” He added, “Other companies have had to reduce the volume of their production and therefore their personnel.” But Garcia also expects to add jobs in other areas: “We want to begin the process of providing raw material to companies through the textile factories that we have in this country as they can qualify under CAFTA, even without TPL.” He said that the FTZ industry was lobbying the government for a reduction in energy costs and an easing of customs procedures.

In related news, FTZ exports in 2014 grew by 6.8% over the previous year according to the Nicaraguan Central Bank. Businessman Mario Zelaya said, “To speak of FTZs in Nicaragua now is not just to talk about garments but also car chassis assembly and certain sectors of agricultural production so we are not dependent on just one sector.” He said that FTZ exports were expected to grow by 3% in 2015 and reach US$2.417 billion. (El Nuevo Diario, Mar. 13; La Prensa, Mar. 14)

6. Social briefs: water and sewers, primary school computers

Presidential spokesperson Rosario Murillo announced an accelerated program to bring potable water and sanitary sewers to 261,000 families in 144 municipalities and four indigenous territories this year. Multiple government agencies will be involved in carrying out the 963 infrastructure projects. The cost of the projects will be US$86 million. (Informe Pastran, Mar. 12; Radio La Primerisima, Mar. 13)

Two programs to put computers in the hands of primary school students made progress last week. A total of 341 students at the Roberto Vargas Batres Elementary School in Managua were given XO mini-computers, becoming the latest of 33,000 primary school students in 121 schools nationally to receive the sturdy little computers in a public-private partnership between the government and private businesses. Presidential education advisor Miguel de Castilla praised the program as a way to improve student studies and teacher effectiveness. Government spokesperson Rosario Murillo also announced that 5,000 students will receive computers through cooperation with the Zamora Teran Foundation. (Informe Pastran, Mar. 12; Radio La Primerisima, Mar. 12)

7. ALBA treaty on medicines forwarded to National Assembly for approval

The government of President Daniel Ortega submitted to the National Assembly a treaty establishing a Multi-national Center for the Regulation and Registration of Medicines for Human Use under the auspices of ALBA (Bolivarian Alliance for the Peoples of Our Americas).  The government stated that this would allow Nicaragua “access to medicines of quality at the best price.” The treaty would develop best practices for research, production, control, transportation, importation, exportation and distribution of medicines within the member States of ALBA. The Center, to be known as ALBA-Med, would also evaluate and test drug quality as well as facilitate knowledge transfer among the members. In addition it would develop legal, technical, and administrative procedures for quality control pre and post commercialization of approved medications. The treaty was signed by ALBA leaders in 2013 in Guayaquil, Ecuador. (El Nuevo Diario, Mar. 10)

8. Copies of Zapatera sculptures will be placed at sites of originals

Some fourteen of the famous giant sculptures from the Island of Zapatera in Lake Cocobolca (Lake Nicaragua), which were carved by the Chorotega indigenous many centuries ago, are being copied in concrete and the copies will be placed back in the original sites on the island. The originals are exhibited at the Old Convent of St. Francis in Granada. The project is sponsored by the Nicaraguan Institute of Tourism with financing from the European Union.

Sculptor Pedro Vargas said that the giant figures are humans combined with animals such as jaguars, ocelots, alligators, and turtles. He said, “I was startled to see how they studied the human figure, facial features, with exact measurements. There is no difference between the methods we use today and what they used, in spite of them being so old.”

Granada tourism director Grechelt Gonzalez said that the effort is being carried out in coordination with the Alfonso Nuñez Agricultural Cooperative and the site will include a guest house and picnic area. She added, “We are working with the members of the cooperative to define a complete ecological tourism project.” (El Nuevo Diario, Mar. 15)