President Hipolito Mejia convened Congress back to work in February and top on the priority to do list are the free trade agreements signed three years ago by the Fernandez administration. All hands seem to be up for the passing of the Free Trade Agreement with the Caribbean (Caricom), but conflicts of interest may put the Central American Free Trade Agreement on hold for a few more months. The special treatment granted to Nicaragua in the Central American Free Trade Agreement the Dominican Republic signed seems to be one of the principal obstacles to the congressional passing of the treaty. El Caribe newspaper reports that Nicaragua, one of the poorest countries in Latin America, was granted quotas and special tariffs for otherwise protected items such as beef, shrimp, chicken breasts, beans, garlic and onions. El Caribe reports that local sectors that would be affected by the competition have strong ties to the senators that have been sitting on the treaty. The newspaper reports that trade with Central America so far is insignificant, only 1% of total imports. Trade by signatory countries is broken down as: Guatemala: textiles, handicrafts, and pharmaceuticals El Salvador: pharmaceuticals, plastics, and footwear Honduras: wood Nicaragua: seafood, beef, beans, vegetables, chicken breasts Costa Rica: dairy products, wood
