Vice-President Linda Walker von Graffenried and Managing Director Tatjana Gaspar had the honor to meet with H.E. Ambassador Luis A. Castro Joo of Peru and Minister Luz Caballero at the LATCAM premises in Zurich. We discussed the current political situation in Peru and projects currently in preparation on both sides. LATCAM wishes the Ambassador a successful tenure and looks forward to future opportunities for collaboration.
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Ramon Esteve, Linda Walker, Manfred Ebling, Dr. Philippe G. Nell and Tatjana Gaspar spoke in a video call with H.E. Ambassador Alfredo Raggio Lafone of Uruguay.
The purpose was to officially welcome the Ambassador in our community, establish a personal contact, present the Chamber with its stakeholders, business-related activities and opportunities, but also to hear from the Ambassador about his views and expectations in the near future.
Uruguay has an egalitarian society with a large middle class, a high level of professional formality and high income per capita, a strong political tradition and stable legal framework. During the pandemic, the country was well positioned to face the challenges of online learning with every school child being equipped with a laptop. Several industry sectors, in particular trade, manufacturing and construction, are already demonstrating that they are on the path of recovery. GDP in the 3rd quarter of 2021 has reached a double digit growth rate. Swiss companies traditionally value Uruguay for its well-functioning infrastructure, stable environment and high-quality products.
LATCAM wishes the Ambassador a successful tenure and looks forward to a productive cooperation.
To watch the promotional video on Uruguay for the Expo Dubai 2021, please click on this LINK.
LATCAM very much appreciates having had the opportunity to offer its Board members once again a platform for a productive exchange, this time with their counterparts from the Swiss Chamber of Commerce in Peru (CCSP), thus bridging the difficulties of having in-person encounters in times of COVID. The Zoom meeting was introduced by the Presidents of both Chambers and a welcome address from H.E. Paul Garnier, Ambassador of Switzerland to Peru, who shared with the participants his first impressions of the situation after the recent beginning of his tenure.
Our discussion was preceded by a brief analysis of the current political and economic outlook and evolved around questions on business perspectives and opportunities for Swiss companies to invest in or export to Peru. The business opportunity projects are part of the stabilisation measures introduced by the Swiss government to support Swiss business amid the COVID crisis.
Participants on the Swiss side included LATCAM Board members Ramon Esteve (ECOM Agroindustrial, LATCAM President), Manfred Ebling (Zurich Insurance, LATCAM Treasurer), Laurent Freixe (Nestlé), Markus Pölzl (Bühler Group), Arturo Stöcklin (Vontobel), Angelo Colombo (Swiss Re Corporate Solutions, Brazil), Jorge Fertis (Credit Suisse), our Advisors to the Board Thomas Först (S-GE) and Philippe Nell (Honorary Ambassador of LATCAM) as well as Tatjana Gaspar (Managing Director).
Participants on the Peruvian side included H.E. Swiss Ambassador Paul Garnier, Stefano Vescovi (Deputy Head of Mission, Swiss Embassy in Lima), CCSP Board members Felipe Antonio Custer Hallett (Corporación Custer S.A., President of CCSP), Eduardo Benavides Torres (Beninzón y Benavides Abogados, Secretary of CCSP), Javier León Valle (Nestlé Peru), Antun Ucovich Helbling (Sindicato Energético), Galo Acosta (ABB S.A.), Carlos Max Cornejo Heinrich (CV Project S.A.C.), Fulvio Giorgio Besseghini (Lombardi S.A.), Gonzalo Carlos Alberto de Cossío de Asín (Orometals), Paulo Pantigoso Velloso da Silveira (Ernst & Young), Jan Mulder (Química Suiza Industrial) as well as Corinne Schirmer (Managing Director of CCSP).
Ramon Esteve, Dr. Philippe G. Nell and Tatjana Gaspar spoke in a video call with H.E. Ambassador Carlos Alonso Villalobos and Minister Alexander Peñaranda from the Embassy of Costa Rica.
The purpose was to officially welcome the Ambassador in our community, establish a personal contact, present the Chamber with its stakeholders, business-related activities and opportunities, but also to hear from the Ambassador about his views and plans in the near future.
Costa Rica became the 38th member of the OECD in May 2021. Steady growth, a green trademark and strong investment in education and social responsibility are the basis for its economy. For Switzerland, Costa Rica ist the 6th largest export market in Latin America and the largest in Central America (CHF 200 mn export volume), mostly goods from the pharmaceutical and medtech sectors as well as watches. Switzerland imports CHF 100 mn worth of goods from Costa Rica, mostly agricultural products, e.g. coffee. One of the greatest challenges for Costa Rica currently is the recovery of the tourism sector, which has suffered from the consequences of the pandemic.
LATCAM wishes the Ambassador a successful tenure and looks forward to a productive cooperation.
What is Better Gold?
The approach chosen by the SBGA is to:
The State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO) and the Swiss Better Gold Association launch the third phase of the Swiss Better Gold Initiative, a public-private partnership promoting responsibly extracted gold from artisanal and small-scale mines.
Anchored on solid results achieved over the first two phases, this new phase will aim to continue to scale up the initiative’s positive impacts on the ground as well as a gradual process of handing-over the responsibility to uphold achieved outcomes from the public to the private partner represented by the Swiss Better Gold Association.
The Swiss Better Gold Initiative was launched in 2013 with the aim of improving social and environmental conditions in artisanal and small-scale gold mining (ASGM) in Peru, Colombia and Bolivia. This new phase of the programme will be deployed from 2021 to 2025 and, in line with the aspiration to attain a higher development impact, will aim to reach out to other
jurisdictions through complementary activities. Further, it will also increase focus on transversal topics such as climate change, gender equality, and enhance knowledge dissemination on responsible ASGM mining.
Setting the scene for this continued public-private partnership, the State Secretary Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch, SECO Director and Director of the Foreign Economic Affairs Directorate, and Mr Olivier Demierre, the President of the Swiss Better Gold Association and Senior Vice President CSR at MKS PAMP, presented the third phase of this meaningful
collaboration. Ambassador Dominique Paravicini, Head of SECO’s Economic Cooperation and Development Division, Ambassador Ana Rosa Valdivieso Santa Mar a of Peru, as well as Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Colombia to the WTO at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Colombia, Santiago Wills, have expressed the importance of the programme.
“Switzerland is a major actor in gold worldwide, importing and exporting vast amounts of the metal every year. The reasons for Switzerland’s major role in global commodity trading can be traced to the country’s long tradition and to the favourable economic conditions it offers to businesses across all sectors. The Swiss Better Gold Initiative is one such measure. It is unique because it is neither a pure development project, nor a pure market approach project. It allows the creation of sustainable value chains from mine to market with a special focus on artisanal and small-scale mining,” notes Mrs Marie-Gabrielle Ineichen-Fleisch.
“The gold industry recognises supporting artisanal and small-scale gold mining as critical to responsible sourcing. To date, the Swiss Better Gold Association, with the support of the Swiss government and the Swiss gold industry, have been able to export more than 8,000 kg of responsibly produced Swiss Better Gold and generate over USD 5.6 million of impact premium for the benefit of participating ASGM producers. The Swiss Better Gold Association is delighted about the fast and positive growth of the initiative and looks very much forward to further expand its reach and support to ASGM producers’ continuous improvements,” adds Olivier Demierre.
To read the Press Release of the launch event in Bern, Switzerland, on September 6, 2021 , please click on the following LINK.
