June 9, 2022
Good morning.
Do you remember from your childhood the game of “passing the message”? Where you’d pass a message to someone, and they’d pass it to the next person, and on down the chain?
How was the message by the end? Same or different?
Vice Minister Redondo,
Licenciado Zelaya,
In my experience, the message always changed.
Today’s workshop focuses on customs communication to ensure that the correct information reaches the last part of the chain to avoid surprises in commercial transactions.
Through activities like this workshop, we support the implementation of the World Trade Organization’s Trade Facilitation Agreement, or TFA.
The U.S. government supports regional economic integration through the programs of the U.S. Department of Commerce and USAID.
For example, programs that harmonize and streamline business processes to ensure that trade is safer and more efficient.
My hope is that the Honduran government and our partners in El Salvador and Guatemala will continue to leverage the support of this community of technical experts. And that the end result will be an increase in regional trade and economic integration.
I encourage all participants today to demonstrate curiosity with their inquiries and honest about their experiences and challenges during this workshop, so that we can collectively gain insights and explore solutions.
My embassy team and I look forward to working with all of you in this important area.
Thank you very much.
