The Ministry of Production, Foreign Trade, Investments and Fisheries published on the night of this Sunday, December 17, the complete text in Spanish of the Agreement on Strategic Economic Cooperation between Ecuador and South Korea (SECA, acronym in English). The document consists of 1,153 pages.

View the full text of the Agreement on Strategic Economic Cooperation between Ecuador and South Korea in Spanish.

View the full text of the Agreement on Strategic Economic Cooperation between Ecuador and South Korea in English.

This Spanish translation comes after Ecuador and South Korea reached a pre-signature of SECA on October 10, as a prelude to full ratification of the trade agreement. The event took place in Seoul (Korea), with the then foreign trade ministers of both countries, Daniel Legard and Bang Moon Kyu, who were responsible for signing the documents.

Ecuador and South Korea have finalized the pre-signing of a trade agreement

On the last day in office, Minister Legarda pointed out that in October, with the pre-signature, the contract was in English. “The Koreans call it a pre-signature, but it is the signing of an agreement that has already been finalized in English, Ecuador has already made a translation into Spanish. Korea will finish making the translation into its language in the first weeks of December, and then they have to complete an internal process that will last several months, and it is expected that between April and June 2024, the next process will be able to be established,” specified Legarda.

Korea is the eleventh destination of Ecuadorian exports; Namely, in the last five years, sales on that market have been gradually growing with an annual average of 38 percent, according to the ministry’s data.

“More than 9.5 billion dollars of investment contracts in two and a half years, despite the difficulties”, emphasizes Daniel Legarda on the last day of the Government

In the meantime, the Ministry of Production assures that the Agreement seeks to take advantage of the economic complementarity of both countries. “While the Asian country is a net importer of agricultural and fishery products due to its population density and geographic location, Ecuador stands out for its biodiversity and agricultural capacity, which cover this demand. Furthermore, advanced technology and the Korean experience provide the country with a window into the future, providing opportunities for growth and modernization of various industrial and technological sectors,” the Ministry explains.

“The agreement with South Korea is the most complete modern agreement signed by Ecuador”

The government portfolio described this agreement as “the most comprehensive and modern that Ecuador has negotiated”, as it covers 23 chapters ranging from goods and services, public procurement, intellectual property, electronic commerce, cooperation for sectors such as agro-industry, manufacturing, fisheries , culture, micro, small and medium enterprises, among others.

It is indicated that this translates into a projection for non-oil export growth of 27%. This will allow Ecuadorian products to reach a market of 51 million consumers. At the same time, the country will count on Korea’s cooperation in areas such as efficient production, innovative methods and machinery for product recycling; and the construction of a technological plant for the development of the food industry in Ecuador.

After ratifying a free trade agreement with China, the government focused on ‘preparing’ a South Korean deal before he left

The ministry added that thanks to the agreement, 98.8% of Ecuador’s current export supply will have tariff preferences, which include potential products from innovative agricultural and agro-industrial sectors such as coffee, cocoa, chocolates, snacks, dairy products and more, which will enter with the tariff of 0 %. Other products such as bananas, fish and sweets will also see tax cuts for short periods. And new products such as meat, dairy products, frozen potatoes, blueberries, pineapples, mangoes will enter Korea.

The agreement also provides for long periods of tax breaks and exclusions for sensitive sectors such as metalworking, textiles and white goods. This will enable industries to adapt and prepare for the new business dynamics.