Deputy Head of Mission conducts first official visit to Honduras
The new Deputy Head of Mission of the British Embassy for Honduras conducted his first official visit to Tegucigalpa 23-25 January.
Deputy Head of Mission, Paul Huggins, held a series of meetings with key stakeholders in the public and private sector at Tegucigalpa to continue strengthening economic and commercial relations between Honduras and the UK. Among the objectives were to understand the business environment and explore opportunities to share UK expertise, including the offer of British companies in priority sectors.
Deputy Head of Mission Huggins met with the Sub Secretary of Economic Integration and International Trade, Mr Melvin Redondo, to discuss Honduras’ economic and commercial plans for 2023 and the status of the implementation of the Association Agreement between Central America and the UK. In addition, he met with representatives from the Honduran Council of the Private Sector (COHEP) and UK companies operating in Honduras to understand their perceptions on the economy and business environment.
Regarding the opportunities to share UK expertise, the Deputy Head of Mission highlighted the benefits of the green economy, including the use of technology in agriculture and water treatment. For this purpose, he held meetings with the Secretary of Strategic Planning, Mr Ricardo Salgado, representatives from the Directorate of Agriculture, Science and Technology (DICTA), and Zamorano University.
Deputy Chief Huggins also explained the role of UK Export Finance (UKEF) -organization in charge to promote and facilitate UK exports around the world- at several meetings as to find opportunities of new commercial projects in Honduras. These included the Central American Economic Integration Bank (CABEI) and the Central Bank of Honduras. The Deputy Head of Mission stated that the UK wants to promote honest and reliable investment through trade using the benefits that UKEF provide to businesspersons.
Finally, the Deputy Head of Mission met at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with the Director General of Foreign Policy, Maria Alejandra Zelaya and the Director of Economic and Trade Relations, Daniel Barahona. They discussed improved ways to take advantage of the UK-Central America Association Agreement, the critical need to tackle climate change and agreed on the importance of Honduras continue joining the international community in condemning the actions of Russia against Ukraine, which are increasing food prices around the world.
From July 2021 to June 2022, total trade between Honduras and the UK was more than UDS220 million; an increase of 45.3% compared to the same period the year before. Honduran exports amounted USD170 million, while UK exports USD50 million. The main Honduran products exported to the UK were fish, crustaceans, coffee, textiles, fruits, vegetables and sugar; while the main UK products exported to Honduras were refined oil, electric motors, plastics, scientific instruments and textile fabrics.