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Country Guide > Central America > Nicaragua | |
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Business Profile Economy Agriculture is the main component of Nicaragua’s economy, with cotton, coffee, sugar, bananas and meat the principal exports. Maize, beans and rice are grown for domestic consumption. The principal manufacturing industries are food, drinks, the production of chemicals and oil refining. There is also a small mining industry working deposits of gold, silver, lead and zinc. Nicaragua’s economic travails during the last 20 years have left it one of the poorest countries in the Americas. Some key industrial operations were nationalised following the 1979 Sandinista revolution but the bulk of the economy was left in private hands. Unfortunately, domestic mismanagement, Western economic sanctions and the cost of the civil war against the ‘contras’ meant that the Sandinista period was one of continuous economic decline. However, the economy has fared little better since then. During the 1990s, Nicaragua implemented a Structural Adjustment programme supervised by the IMF. It also required several injections of emergency aid after a series of major natural disasters – floods and droughts – which caused huge damage to the agricultural economy. Low commodity prices and the pressure of a substantial foreign debt exacerbated the country’s economic difficulties. In 2001, Nicaragua was a beneficiary of the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) initiative which wrote off part of the debt, but it remains a significant drain on the economy. Nicaragua’s largest trading partners are the USA (over one-third of the total), Germany, Spain, El Salvador and to a lesser extent, Nicaragua’s other Central and South American neighbours. Nicaragua is a member of the Central American Common Market and the Inter-American Development Bank. Business Businessmen wear business suits with ties, or long-sleeved shirts and smart trousers; businesswomen wear business dresses. A knowledge of Spanish is an advantage, although some businesspeople speak English. Enquire at the Embassy for interpreter services. The best time to visit is November to March. Office hours: Mon-Fri 0800-1700. Commercial Information The following organisations can offer advice: Cámara de Comercio de Nicaragua, PO Box 135-C-001, Managua (tel: 268 3505 or 3514; fax: 268 3600; e-mail: comercio@ibw.com.ni); or Servicio de Información Comercial, Centro de Exportaciones e Inversiones, Hotel Intercontinental, 1 cuadra abajo 3 1/2 cuadras al sur 1208, PO Box 5932, Managua (tel: 268 3860; fax: 266 4476; e-mail: cei@cei.org.ni; website: www.cei.org.ni). |