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AFTER SIX MONTHS, CAFTA FAILING THE POOREST, BENEFITING THE RICHEST.

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CAFTA has been in effect for six months in Nicaragua and El Salvador, and data show that the results are in line with what both supporters and opponents of the agreement expected; the strong players are benefiting, the weak are not (see NotiCen, 2004-11-18). In El Salvador, first of Central America's countries to implement the treaty, the many thousands of promised jobs have failed to materialize, and, said economist Raul Moreno, only big businesses, importers mainly, have seen gains. In Nicaragua, says William Rodriguez of the Centro de Estudios Internacionales, "CAFTA has sown the seeds for unfair trade. Nicaragua is a small country that can hardly compete with the US."

Nicaragua's Ministry of Development, Industry, and Commerce (Ministerio de Fomento Industria y Comercio, MIFIC) said that, since the treaty came into effect, exports to the US have increased by 38%. Increases in exports of coffee, raw sugar, beef, and gold, which account for 98% of exports to the US, saw the biggest gains. Some of these commodities have seen substantial increases in world prices, irrespective of the treaty. MIFIC reported that the country has also seen broader diversification of exports, adding 171 products to its list of products for export. Since CAFTA's onset, Nicaragua's sugar exports have risen, but only 37 of the country's 339 sugar...

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