El Salvador´s Trade Policies and Practices Reviewed by WTO

By Eproint

The fifth review of the trade policies and practices of El Salvador took place on 18 and 20 April 2023. The basis for the review is a report by the World Trade Organization (WTO) Secretariat and a report by the Government of El Salvador.

“One of the main initiatives undertaken by El Salvador to improve the trade and investment environment is the simplification and digitization of administrative procedures which cuts across many policy areas. In this connection, Members recognized efforts towards customs modernization, trade facilitation, risk management, improvements in transparency and the regulatory environment, the promotion of MSMEs and gender equality, and the modernization of physical infrastructure”, were the concluding remarks by the Chairperson.

According to the report, for most of the period under review (2016-22), the Salvadoran economy continued to show positive real GDP growth rates, with an annual average of 2.4% between 2016 and 2019. The Salvadoran economy recovered from the crisis caused by the pandemic in 2021, when real GDP growth reached 10.3%. This substantial growth is the result of a recovery in domestic demand, stronger external demand and an increase in remittances, which accounted for 26.1% of GDP in 2021. Exports and imports of goods and services recovered steadily, up by more than 26% in real terms from 2020 levels in both cases. The Salvadoran economy grew by 2.2% in the first three months of 2022 and the real growth rate for the whole year is expected to reach 2.8%. 

Related to intellectual property rights and protection, during the review period, El Salvador ratified two new intellectual property treaties: the Treaty to Facilitate Access to Published Works for Persons Who Are Blind, Visually Impaired, or Otherwise Print Disabled (Marrakesh Treaty) in October 2014, and the Treaty on Audiovisual Performances (Beijing Treaty) in October 2016, which entered into force on 30 September 2016 and 28 April 2020, respectively. 

El Salvador also made a request to the International Union for the Protection of New Varieties of Plants (UPOV) for assistance in applying legislation based on the UPOV Convention but has not signed the Convention as it uses the patent system. 

The WTO highlighted the amendment of the Intellectual Property Law (LPI), approved in 2017. “The amendment to the LPI allows holders of copyright and related rights to manage the use of their works. The LPI gives the holder of copyright the right to import or export, or authorize the import or export of, copies of their lawfully manufactured works, and the right to prevent the import or export of unlawfully manufactured copies; similar rights are regulated in the LPI for holders of industrial property rights”.