The president of the Association of Exporters (ADEX), Juan Varilias Velasquez, asked the government to promptly react to the indefinite national strike that will start on Monday 18 February that was announced by GTL PERU & AMERICA, a guild of freight carriers and port logistics of the country.
"Every time we face a measure of force of this kind, it affects the country's economy and the image of our country as a reliable supplier of products to the world. It is important that our authorities evaluate what measures they are going to take in order to avoid any damage to our activity," he said.
He also said that, in the short term, it was important to fix the streets of Callao, order the flow of trucks, and have more truck parking lots to help decongest the areas surrounding the first port in the country. "It is also necessary for that the APM Terminals Callao (APMTC) implement its appointment system to help expedite the export process," he stated.
"An important point is to approve the cabotage regulation in order to facilitate the transfer of the export cargo from the interior of the country by sea to the port of Callao or to another port from which the cargo can be shipped abroad," he said.
The cargo transporters of the northern macro region, the southern macro region, Lima and Callao that are members of GTL PERU & AMERICA will participate in the strike. They have raised seven issues to the Ministry of Transport and Communications, which still haven't been resolved.
The issues include the reduction of fuel prices, tolls fees in destroyed areas and / or with a minimum of kilometers. In Lima, for example, they pay five tolls in 78 kilometers of roads. They also ask for a solution to the port problem, mainly in Callao, Paita, and Pisco.
"Last year our exports closed with an 8% growth and it was the third year of continuous growth after three years of falls (-8% in 2013, -9% in 2014 and -14% in 2015). It is crucial to re-establish conversations and to adopt measures that prevent serious damage to our economy," he concluded.
To consider
ADEX considered it important to speed up the installation of the Single Transportation Authority for Lima and Callao, whose objective is to put an end to the atomization of transport authorities in the capital, which prevents an integral, orderly, and efficient management of that service.
The congress must approve in its plenary session the operations budget for 2019 proposed by the Transportation Commission.