Guatemala keeps up its FDI strategy

By Mayora IP

Guatemala’s President Alejandro Giammattei repeated its call for foreign direct investment (FDI) during a virtual forum regarding the country’s investment promotion program "Guatemala no se detiene” (Guatemala does not stop).

The head of state assured that, despite the crisis caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, the country is still the largest economy in Central America and has quickly established itself as a key player and an engine for foreign investment throughout the region. 

Giammattei took office in January 2020 with a pro-business agenda focused on attracting FDI to improve the country’s investment climate, as international companies choosing to invest in Guatemala face barriers related to complex regulations, inconsistent judicial decisions and bureaucratic impediments.

The country has since enacted regulations to generate trust and legal certainty among investors. Recently, through Decree 6-2021, the Congress amended the Free Trade Zone Law, which includes the cancellation of the status of prohibited activities to several economic activities linked to the production or commercialization in such zones. Guatemala has also established fiscal incentives for companies operating in its new special economic zones, called special public economic development zones.

"Guatemala no se detiene" is part of this changes, a roadmap designed to generate investments through the advantages offered by nearshoring to more sophisticated sectors with high growth potential in the country, such as the pharmaceutical industry, medical devices, electronic devices, and Business Processing Outsourcing (BPOs).