Nicaragua Network

1. Ortega inaugurates new cement plant and announces plans for deep water port at Bluefields
2. Farmers in some areas losing crops due to drought; rain predicted for September
3. Tercero may get new trial
4. National electricity grid expands to incorporate the Caribbean Coast
5. Former sugarcane workers to be compensated
6. Life expectancy and salaries rise under Sandinista leadership
7. Number of Salvadoran refugees in Nicaragua on the rise
8. UCA study released on urban settlements
9. Public debt declines

1. Ortega inaugurates new cement plant and announces plans for deep water port at Bluefields

A new cement grinding mill that is expected to employ 200 workers was inaugurated in Managua on August 27. Attending the inauguration were Fernando Gonzalez and other representatives of Cemex LatAm Holdings, S.A., a subsidiary of the Mexican firm CEMEX, and President Daniel Ortega. Gonzalez said that CEMEX, which began working in Nicaragua fifteen years ago, had invested US$30 million in the new plant and expected to invest another US$25 million in another plant expected to be completed in 2017. He said that the company had strengthened its capacity to produce better cement and pre-mixed concrete and thus would participate in major Nicaraguan infrastructure projects such as the highway to Bluefields, the new baseball stadium, the Tumarin hydroelectric project, affordable housing projects, and the interoceanic shipping canal.

President Ortega said in his speech that the continued tripartite dialogue between government, business, and labor had made possible the economic growth that the country was experiencing. And he said that it was happening at a time when the country was enjoying a long period of peace and security such as few Nicaraguans have seen in the country’s history. He said, “We were convinced that the only alternative that Nicaragua had in order to move forward was to join forces and not be confrontational which had been the epidemic of our people throughout its history.” He stated that to this must be added the joint Latin American efforts of PETROCARIBE and ALBA along with the support of the government of Mexico and infrastructure and other investments by Mexican capital including Sukarne, Lala, Aeromexico, Cemex and other companies.

Ortega announced that his government was working with international advisers on the design for a deep water port at Bluefields that, along with the Managua-Bluefields highway under construction, would facilitate Nicaragua’s exports to Europe and other countries with coasts on the Atlantic Ocean and Caribbean Sea. Those products, he said, can at present only be exported from ports in Honduras and Costa Rica. Ortega said that there had been plans in the works to build such a port at Monkey Point but those plans were discarded because of the need to build new infrastructure there, much of which already exists at Bluefields. He noted that studies were completed in the 1980s for a Bluefields deep water port and that Japan had completed studies of the area and a mission was planned from Taiwan to do further studies. (El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 28; Informe Pastran, Aug. 28; Nicaragua News, Aug. 28)

2. Farmers in some areas losing crops due to drought; rain predicted for September

Small farmers from Carazo and Chinandega came to Managua last week to explain to the authorities the difficult situation in their regions where they have lost their entire crops of corn, beans, and sorghum due to the drought. Mayan Guzman Lopez of the Nicaraguan Evangelical University said that the country has received only 28% of normal rainfall so far this year which has resulted in substantial crop loss. Guzman Lopez added that in eleven communities families lost their first harvest and have exhausted their food reserve from the second harvest of last year and are suffering hunger. Among them are El Mojon, Santa Elena, Martha Espinoza, El Nance, El Naranjo, Tcomapixsa, and El Gigante. He added that the drought has affected vegetables and fruit trees as well so “there aren’t even any mangos to fool the stomach.” He said that the farmers want the government to declare a state of emergency in the so-called “dry corridor” of the country.

Also last week, the Central American Coordination Center for the Prevention of Natural Disasters (CEPREDENAC) met in Managua to discuss the drought which has affected a “dry corridor” running through the region. Speaking at the meeting, President Daniel Ortega emphasized the importance of an integral approach to assist families who need food both in normal times and in times of drought but that it was not necessary to declare a state of emergency at this point. Denis Melendez, executive secretary of the National Roundtable for Risk Management, explained further saying, “It is a complex situation but we do not have those [emergency] levels with relation to food reserves of the Nicaraguan population.” He noted that “A new [weather] forecast indicates that during the months of September and part of October we will have rains that are quite strong and consistent. These precipitation levels will not only help with agricultural activity but also help with recovery of ground water reserves.”  The government announced on Aug. 31 that school children in 49 municipalities in the dry corridor will now receive two meals a day Monday through Saturday. (Informe Pastran, Aug. 25, 31)

3. Tercero may get new trial

Bernardo Tercero, whose execution by the State of Texas was suspended on Aug. 25, may get a new trial for the killing in 1997 of a man in a dry cleaners during a robbery that went wrong. The appeals court that stopped the execution returned the case to the lower court with several options, among them a new sentencing phase or an entirely new trial. The appeal presented evidence that Tercero’s girlfriend had admitted to lying to the court and that eyewitness evidence from another woman indicating that Tercero and the victim had struggled and the gun had gone off by accident was withheld from the defense. And, after Tercero was convicted, his lawyers did not appeal his case.

Maritza Gonzalez, a member of his current legal team said that the appeal court’s decision was “a miracle.” Private investigator Annie Nisenson said, “We are all very happy. With a lot of hope we are ready to move forward.” Michael Charlton, another attorney on the team said that they do not know for certain whether the appeals court will decide on a new trial or merely a resentencing.  Lidia Tercero and Franklin Tercero, Bernardo’s mother and son, attended a service at their church in Managua to give thanks for the suspension of the execution. They said that they would continue to petition the US consulate for visas to visit Bernardo in Texas. The pastor of the Rivers of Living Water Church said that the congregation would continue to pray until Bernardo returned to Nicaragua and he asked members to give a contribution for the Terceros’ trip to the United States.  (El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 26)

4. National electricity grid expands to incorporate the Caribbean Coast

Salvador Mansell, president of Nicaragua’s National Electrical Transmission Co. (ENETREL), touted the Sandinista government’s accomplishments on bringing the Caribbean Coast into the electrical grid at the Second Congress of Science, Technology, and Environment at the National Autonomous University in Managua. He noted that in 2006 the Pacific-based national electrical grid ended in Matiguas but in 2008 and 2009 transmission lines for the first time entered the North Caribbean Autonomous Region as far as Siuna and today includes Mulukuku and the Mining Triangle. While still well below the Pacific Coast’s 85% access to electricity, Mansell said 40%-45% of Caribbean Coast residents now have access. He also announced that the extension of 200 kilometers of transmission lines from Siuna to Bilwi is 60% complete with the investment of US$40 million. Mansell said that transmission lines are being extended along with highway construction in both the North and South Autonomous Regions, noting the extension of infrastructure around Bluefields in preparation for the construction of a major port there. (Informe Pastran, Aug. 31)

5. Former sugarcane workers to be compensated

The National Assembly, including deputies from the Sandinista and the two opposition blocs, voted to compensate 2,335 former sugar workers with US$3,000 each. The debt goes back to when the neoliberal governments of the 1990s privatized state-owned sugar processing plants in which the workers owned a 25% interest. The National Assembly budgeted US$6.8 million to retire the debt.  When the factories were privatized, 4,000 workers were compensated. The additional compensation was negotiated last year by the government and the Nicaraguan Association of Former Sugar Cane Workers. (El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 25)

6. Life expectancy and salaries rise under Sandinista leadership

A recent Global Life Expectancy Study sponsored by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation was published this week by The Lancet medical daily. The study highlighted that Nicaragua’s life expectancy has experienced significant growth in the last few years rising from 65.3 to over 75 years old. The Global Life Expectancy Study noted that better nutrition and greater health care services are key factors to improve life expectancy.

Another study presented last week in Managua by the US consulting firm Hay Group said that by 2016 Nicaragua could become the Central American country with the highest growth in salaries, with an estimated 6% average. The study also pointed out that more than 90% of Nicaraguan companies have a short-term wage incentive program; 83% offer life insurance; and 75% cover medical expenses. Other benefits include free meals, employee discounts, free transportation and educational support. (Nicaragua News, Aug. 28, 31; http://www.dw.com/en/study-global-life-expectancy-rises/a-18676558)

7. Number of Salvadoran refugees in Nicaragua on the rise

According to the Jesuit Refugee and Migrant Service in Managua, more Salvadorans are arriving in Nicaragua and asking for asylum as refugees. Emma Pelegrin Cruz, a staff person at the service, said that while in the past more Nicaraguans travelled to El Salvador looking for work, now more Salvadorans are entering Nicaragua looking for protection. In order to be granted refugee status in Nicaragua, migrants must submit documents to the government to demonstrate that they are in danger in their country of origin. Pelegrin said, “This migration is mainly urban with people leaving urban centers who naturally look to settle in cities and Managua is the destination most choose.” She added that El Salvador has recently lived through one of its most violent months with 51 homicides in one day in August.

“Milagros”, who did not want to give her real name, now lives in a neighborhood in the western part of Managua. She tells how her family had a small store in El Salvador and was forced to pay extortion money to a gang. The family’s asylum petition was turned down by Canada but accepted by Nicaragua. “We filled out the application,” she said adding, “The government did its investigations and proved that our history was true. They supported us and for a year and a half we have been living legally in Nicaragua. It’s a new beginning.”

El Salvador’s ambassador to Nicaragua, Carlos Ascencio, said that while he had no figures he believed that the migratory flow between the two countries was the same as in the past. He said that historically there have been Salvadorans in Nicaragua [thousands came to Nicaragua during the 1980s when civil war raged in El Salvador] and he found numerous Salvadorans in Esteli and Nueva Guinea on a recent trip around the country. (El Nuevo Diario, Aug. 31)

8. UCA study released on informal neighborhoods

The Central American University in Managua and the organization TECHO released a Census of Urban Settlements of the Pacific Region of Nicaragua carried out in 2013 which examined 408 informal urban neighborhoods, including 157 in Managua. The period of greatest growth of these neighborhoods in Managua was between 1990 and 2006 when armed conflict ended. The government provided lots but without houses or services such as water and electricity based on the neoliberal policies of that time period which mandated cutbacks in public expenditures, according to the study. To this day, one in five of these neighborhoods is still not connected to the public potable water supply and most are not connected to the sewer lines. Sixty percent of the informal neighborhoods in Managua have street lights but many of those who have connected to the electricity grid do not have meters.

The majority (83%) of the informal barrios have Sandinista neighborhood organizations such as Councils of Citizen Power, according to the study but the study found no organizing by opposition political or civil society groups in these poor neighborhoods. Seventy percent of the neighborhood groups have participated in actions such as barrio meetings, collection of signatures on petitions, etc. The government’s Plan Roof, which provides galvanized roofing sheets and nails to poor householders, is the program with the greatest coverage having a presence in 81% of the settlements studied. The property titling program has been involved in 50% of the neighborhoods and the government’s affordable housing program has built houses in 28% of them. The fact that as many as 90% of these neighborhoods are in areas of high risk for floods, landslides, or other calamities could explain the government’s reluctance to build houses in those barrios. (Informe Pastran, Aug. 31; http://issuu.com/techonica/docs/informe_techo__1_)

9. Public debt declines

The Central Bank announced on Aug. 25 that Nicaragua’s public [government] debt totaled US$5.659 billion as of June 30, 2015, a drop of US$140.7 million from December 2014, or 2.4%. Foreign debt dropped by 3.8% while domestic debt increased by 4.1%. Foreign debt currently stands at US$4.614 billion. The Central Bank owes 35.2% of the debt while the national government owes 63.7%, with 1.1% owed by other public sector entities. According to the Bank, the sustainability of the debt improved with the debt to GDP ratio at 46.5%, a drop of 2.6%. [The safe level of fiscal sustainability is evidently much disputed with recommended safe levels ranging between 10% and 70% depending on the country.]

During the first half of 2015, Nicaragua received US$127.5 million in primarily multilateral aid. Loans came from the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the Central American Bank for Economic Integration (BCIE), and the World Bank with smaller amounts from South Korea, the International Fund for Agricultural Development, the OPEC Fund for International Development, the European Investment Bank, and the Japan International Cooperation Agency for government projects in construction, social services, health and education, electricity, gas, and water, with smaller amounts for projects in transportation, telecommunications, public administration, agriculture, and fisheries.

New loan agreements have been signed for US$299 million, 63.9% with multilateral funders and 36.1% with individual countries. For example, a loan in the amount of US$181.1 million from the BCIE will go to improve rural roads and highways with connections to the Caribbean Coast. And a loan of US$66.3 million from South Korea will finance sewers for Juigalpa while Italy is financing a dairy project in the South Caribbean Autonomous Region. (Informe Pastran, Aug. 25)