Colombia has just assumed the chair of the Pro Tempore Presidency of the Andean Community (CAN). At the inauguration event, the Colombian President Iván Duque, indicated that the main challenge in the current scenario will be to strengthen the integration process, encouraging the formation of productive chains to reach third markets. He stated that during his presidency he will seek to boost the creative industries, the logistics sector and new financial technologies in the region.
Colombia informed that it will be proposing that areas such as electronic commerce, public purchases and a roadmap of the Andean Digital Economy be put on the CAN agenda . The idea is to achieve greater insertion of CAN economies in the international context and foster the exchange of experiences and good practices in emerging technologies, blockchain and incentives to develop the creative industries in the subregion.
In addition, the Minister of Commerce of Colombia, José Manuel Restrepo, explained that during this year they will be working to drive the accumulation of extended origin aimed at favoring the use of supplies originating in member countries. He added that they will seek to adopt a digital agenda and implement common regulatory frameworks for international goods transport, customs transit and temporary vehicle internment. The interoperability of the Single Windows for Foreign Trade and the implementation of the Digital Certificate of Origin are some of the measures contemplated.
The CAN is made up of Bolivia, Peru, Ecuador and Colombia as member states with Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Chile as associate states. Colombia, handed the presidency from Bolivia, will hold this position until July 2021. The event was attended virtually by the presidents Jeanine Añez Chávez from Bolivia, Lenin Moreno Garcés from Ecuador and Martín Vizcarra Cornejo from Peru, as well as by the trade and foreign ministers of the four member states.