Costa Rica seeks to reactivate Union of Banana Exporting Countries
Costa Rica will lead a process to evaluate if the countries that were
part of the Union of Banana Exporting Countries (UPEB) are interested in
reviving the organization, created in 1974.
Tania López Lee,
vice minister of agriculture and livestock, said that Costa Rica
obtained the approval of other Central American countries to organize
talks to revive UPEB and to incorporate Ecuador as a new member.
This
is one of the agreements reached at the last meeting of the Central
American Agricultural Council, held in Colombia on Sept. 25.
Past
UPEB member countries included Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa
Rica, Panama, Colombia and Venezuela. Ecuador, the world’s largest
banana exporter, has confirmed interest in joining the organization.
Efforts
among member countries will be led by a working group from Costa Rica’s
Agriculture and Livestock Ministry and the National Banana Corporation.
A
series of scandals involving bribe accusations, high taxes and lawsuits
diminished UPEB's influence in the world export market, and its
activity has been limited to charging a small tax on corporate banana
exports.
Publication date: 10/4/2012
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