WT/REG316/M/1  
 
28 July 2014  
(14-4336)  Page: 1/3  
Committee on Regional Trade Agreements 
Seventy-third Session    
 
 FREE TRADE AGREEMENT BETWEEN EL SALVADOR, GUATEMALA,  
HONDURAS AND COLOMBIA 
(GOODS AND SERVICES) 
NOTE ON THE MEETING OF 23 JUNE 2014 
Chairman: Ambassador Francisco Pirez Gordillo (Uruguay) 
1.1.  The 73rd Session of the Committee on Regional Trade Agreements (hereinafter 'CRTA' or the 
'Committee') was convened in Airgram WTO/AIR/4299/Rev.1 dated 13 June 2014. 
1.2.  Under Agenda Item B.V of the session, the CRTA considered the Free Trade Agreement 
between El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Colombia, (hereinafter "the Agreement"). 
1.3.  The Chairman said that the Agreement had entered into force on 12 November 2009 for 
Guatemala and Colombia; 1 February 2010 for El Salvador and Colombia; and 27 March 2010 for 
Honduras and Colombia. It had been notified to the WTO by the Parties on 31 August 2012 under 
Article XXIV:7(a) of the GATT 1994 and the Understanding on the Interpretation of Article XXIV of GATT 1994 as an Agreement establishing a free trade area (document WT/REG316/N/1) and under 
GATS Article V:7(a) as an Agreement providing for th e liberalization of trade in services within the 
meaning of Article V of the GATS (document S/C/ N/646). The text of the Agreement was available, 
together with its Annexes, on the Parties' official websites. The Factual Presentation on the goods and services aspects (document WT/REG316/1 dated 3 March 2014) had been prepared by the 
Secretariat on its own responsibility in full consultation with the Parties, in accordance with 
paragraph 7(b) of the Transparency Me chanism for Regional Trade Agreements 
(document WT/L/671). In addition, written questi ons and replies on this Agreement had been 
distributed in document WT/REG316/2 dated 18 June 2014. He proposed to organize the 
consideration of the Agreement by first asking the Parties and then other Members to give any general comments and then turn to the specifics of the Agreement, using the Factual Presentation, 
document WT/REG316/1 to guide the debate. Th ey would then go through the questions and 
replies document. 
1.4.  The representative of Guatemala speaking also for El Salvador and Honduras said he 
appreciated the opportunity to present the Free Trade Agreement between El Salvador, 
Guatemala, Honduras and Colombia, and gave special thanks to the Secretariat for its preparation 
of the Factual Presentation. He also thanked Canada and Peru for their questions and their interest in the consideration of the Agreement. 
1.5.  The Free Trade Agreement between El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Colombia was 
aligned with the trade policy framework of the Parties with a view to promoting trade liberalization. Efforts had been centred on the development of the Central American integration process under 
competitive conditions, with the ultimate objectiv e of furthering the integration of the economies 
into the multilateral trading system. The Agreement's main objectives had included the stimulation, expansion and diversification of trade in goods and services, fostering conditions for fair competition within the free trade area to establish clear and mutually advantageous rules 
governing the promotion and protection of investment as well as trade in goods and services. 
1.6.  The Parties, as Members of the WTO, resp ected the balance of rights and obligations they 
had assumed when joining the Organization. This meant complying with its rules and seeking to WT/REG316/M/1 
 
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  liberalize tariff and non-tariff trade barriers by establishing mechanisms that allowed reasonable 
adjustment to free trade for goods sensitive to competition between the Parties. 
1.7.  The Agreement, signed on 9 August 2007, had 21 chapters containing legal provisions 
applicable to the Parties on trade in goods and services, investment and intellectual property. It 
contained provisions on national treatment and market access for goods, and covered disciplines 
that supplemented the tariff reduction programme, such as rules of origin, customs procedures, standardization measures, metrology and authorization procedures, sanitary and phytosanitary 
procedures, and unfair trade practices. The Agreement also included commitments on investment, 
cross-border trade in services, the temporary entry of business persons, competition policy, monopolies and State-owned enterprises, government procurement, intellectual property, and dispute settlement, as well as administrative and institutional provisions concerning areas such as 
transparency, and general aspects. The Agreement had also established an indicative work plan for 
technical cooperation between the Parties, giving priority to areas such as technical barriers to trade and sanitary and phytosanitary measures; cooperation for micro, small and medium 
enterprises; market access, with emphasis on floriculture and textiles; and government 
procurement. 
1.8.  Following the entry into force of the Agreem ent, trade between El Salvador and Colombia had 
increased from a total of US$96 million in 2009, prior to the entry into force of the Agreement, 
to US$184 million in 2013, i.e. an increase of 92%. Salvadoran exports to Colombia had increased by 116% in 2013 compared to the previous year . Their main exports had been sugar, toys, 
preserved tuna, iron and steel, and aluminium products. Colombia's exports to El Salvador 
included goods such as oils and fuels, medicine s, perfumes, plastic products, and confectionary, 
making Colombia the twelfth largest source of El Salvador's imports. Colombia was the fourth largest investor in El Salvador, accounting for 9% of total FDI. 
1.9.  Following the entry into force of the Ag reement on 27 May 2010, bilateral trade between 
the Honduras and Colombia had grown stronger, with a trade surplus in favour of Colombia. During 2007-2009, prior to the entry into force of the Agreement, exports from Honduras to 
Colombia had averaged US$3.21 million, and ha d been declining steadily. During 2011-2013, 
following the entry into the force of the Agr eement, exports had aver aged US$11.32 million. 
Colombian FDI in Honduras was on average US$17.63 million during this period. 
1.10.  Guatemala was at the forefront of trade between Colombia and the Northern Triangle. 
Colombia accounted for 0.6% of Guatemala's total exports, and 3.2% of its total imports. Since 
the entry into force of the Agreement, there had been a steady growth in trade between Colombia 
and Guatemala in all sectors. As far as goods were concerned, Guatemala's imports from Colombia 
had increased from approximately US$0.4 billio n in 2006 to US$1.1 billion in 2012, while 
Guatemala's exports to Colombia had increased from US$0.02 billion in 2006 to US$0.08 billion in 2012. As for trade in services, the Parties' co mmitments had been improved compared to the 
GATS, and trade in services was expected to increase even further between Guatemala and 
Colombia. 
1.11.  El Salvador, Honduras and Guatemala were continuing efforts to promote their trade 
relations with Colombia, in the hope of strength ening trade flows through the preferences granted, 
and encouraging direct investment flows between the Parties. 
1.12.  The Parties were confident that this exercise would contribute to improving the 
administration of the Agreement, thus strength ening the economic ties between them, and that 
the implementation of the Agreement would continue to strengthen the WTO's multilateral trading 
system. They were ready to answer any further questions.  
1.13.  The representative of Colombia thanked the WTO Secretariat for its work in preparing the 
factual document for the consideration of the Free Trade Agreement between Colombia and the 
Northern Triangle (El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras). The document clearly reflected the commitments and obligations assumed under the Agreement. She also thanked the representatives of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras for their constructive engagement in the 
preparation of the review, and Canada and Peru for their questions. WT/REG316/M/1 
 
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  1.14.  The Agreement had been signed on 9 August 2007 and marked a very important step 
in the internationalization of the Parties' economies and in the deepening of their trade relations. It had entered into force in November 2009 with El Salvador, February 2010 with Guatemala, and March 2010 with Honduras. The background to the Agreement lay in the Partial Scope 
Agreements (PSAs) between Colombia and Guatemala (No. 5), El Salvador (No. 8) and Honduras 
(No. 9), which had been signed within the fram ework of the 1980 Treaty of Montevideo and had 
generated considerable momentum in bilateral trade relations. This had led to their Governments 
negotiating a joint Agreement that would allow for complementarity between their economies. The 
negotiations had covered all the disciplines of a fully up-to-date integration scheme, incorporating provisions on market access and disciplines concerning trade in services and investment. 
1.15.  The Agreement established a tariff reduction programme that took into account the 
sensitivities of each of the economies. Upon its entry into force, free access had been granted for 
53% of all tariffs; in 2014 this percentage had already risen to 63%, and in 2019 it would be 70%. Some of the goods that had been excluded were subject to negotiation as from 2010, the year 
when the Parties had decided to further deepen the Agreement. 
1.16.  The Agreement contained 21 chapters and three annexes which covered areas such as 
market access for trade in goods, rules of origin and procedures, trade facilitation, sanitary and 
phytosanitary measures and technical barriers to trade, services, government procurement, 
dispute settlement, and environmental and labour  issues. The results of the Agreement were 
reflected in deeper and more fluid trade, investment and tourism. 
1.17.  In 2013, Colombia's exports had amounted  to US$969 million (15% more than the value 
recorded in the previous year), while its import s had amounted to US$76 million (13% more than 
the value in the previous year). Colombia was one of the main investors in Northern Triangle markets. In 2012, Colombia's FDI in  these markets was US$600.8 million.  
1.18.  Lastly, regarding administration, the Agreement's Free Trade Commission had held two 
meetings (on 23 July 2010 and 28 July 2011), had signed twelve decisions and had established various committees and working groups in accordance with the Agreement's commitments, such 
as the Committees on Trade in Goods, Trade Facilitation, Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures, 
Technical Barriers to Trade, Government Proc urement and Cross-Border Trade in Services. 
1.19.  The representative of the United States no ted the substantial carve out of both agricultural 
and industrial tariffs from the Agreement. Large numbers of tariff lines appeared to remain 
dutiable including many comprising the Parties' top 25 exports. He requested the Parties to notify 
the non-notified agreements in Table 5.1. 
1.20.  The representative of Guatemala, answerin g a question raised by Peru in writing on its 
competition law, said that Guatemala did not yet have such a law. However efforts were being 
made to ensure the adoption of the law by Congress.  
1.21.  The Chairman said that the consideration of the Goods and Services Aspects of the Free 
Trade Agreement between El Salvador, Guatemal a, Honduras and Colombia had allowed the 
Committee to clarify a number of questions and oral discussion of this RTA could be concluded in accordance with paragraph 11 of the Transparency  Mechanism. If any delegations wished to ask 
follow up questions they were invited to forwar d submissions in writing to the Secretariat by 30 
June 2014 and Parties were asked to submit replies in writing by no later than 14 July 2014. In 
accordance with paragraph 13 of the Transparency Mechanism all written submissions, as well as minutes of this meeting would be circulated promptly, in all WTO official languages, and would be 
made available on the WTO website. 
1.22.  The Committee took note of the comments made. 
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