On August 14th, the Finance Committee of Chile’s Chamber of Deputies held a session to discuss the bill that would approve the Advanced Framework Agreement and the Interim Trade Agreement between Chile and the European Union. Signed in Brussels in December 2023, the agreement aims to strengthen bilateral trade, ensuring preferential access for key Chilean products.
The two-hour afternoon session was attended by government officials, including the Undersecretary for International Economic Affairs (SUBREI), Claudia Sanhueza; the Director of Bilateral Economic Affairs, Sebastián Gómez, and other officials from the Treasury.
The Committee invited various speakers from strategic sectors of the Chilean economy, such as Juan Carlos Domínguez, President of ChileCarne; Lucía Sepúlveda, from the platform against FTAs “Chile Mejor sin TLC,” and Miguel Canala, from the Chilean Exporters Association, Asoex.
Domínguez focused his presentation on the benefits of the agreement for the Chilean pork and poultry exporting sector. He highlighted that the industry has become the country’s fourth largest food exporting sector, with over 1 billion USD exported in 2023, representing 89% of the total meat exported by Chile. He underscored that access to the demanding European market has been instrumental to this growth and that the agreement will help Chile maintain its position, increase export quotas, and benefit from preferential tariffs.
ChileCarne’s President also emphasized the agreement’s positive impact on employment and economic growth in rural areas. He explained that the sector provides more than 21,600 direct and 11,300 indirect jobs in 25 rural communities, where 70% of suppliers are SMEs. “The agreement not only strengthens our position in the European market, but it also ensures stability and job creation in rural areas, which depend heavily on the export of our products,” he said.
The session provided members of the Finance Committee with a comprehensive overview of the benefits and challenges of the Advanced Framework Agreement, hearing from those in favor and against the treaty. The Committee agreed to continue a thorough analysis in the next sessions to ensure it benefits all sectors involved equitably.
The discussion was a step towards the agreement’s ratification process, which promises to have a considerable impact on Chile’s economy, especially in strategic sectors such as agri-food, which have proven to be a pillar for economic growth and job creation in the country.
