Services Subcommittee

About us

The Pacific Alliance seeks to achieve the free circulation of services and capital among its members, for which the Services Subcommittee works based on two pillars:

  • Position itself as an attractive destination for investment and trade in services; and

  • Increase investment flows and trade in services, among its members and to the rest of the world.

In terms of services, the Pacific Alliance aims to consolidate itself as a leader in the trade of value-added services, to attract development, innovation and growth for the region. In the same way, the insertion in world trade in services is focused on the diversification of the exportable supply of services.

Subcommittee Coordination 2022

Mexico – Secretariat of Economy
María Julia Escalante Rebollar
Director of International Trade in Services and Investment
Undersecretary of Foreign Trade
maria.escalanter@economia.gob.mx

MEMBERS OF THE TECHNICAL GROUP

Country Name Organization
Chile Alejandro Buvinic SUBREI
Chile Juan Salvador Bonilla SUBREI
Colombia Álvaro Rodríguez Rodríguez MINCIT
Mexico Maria Julia Escalante Secretaría de Economía
Mexico Leslie Sarahí González Cortés Secretaria de Economía
Peru Victoria Palacios MINCETUR
Peru Karina Tejada MINCETUR
Peru Antonella Cadenas MINCETUR
Peru Andrea Bulnes MINCETUR

Mandates

  • The Lima Declaration – July 2019

    • Design strategies to strengthen the export of knowledge-based services, through electronic means, in the identified sectors.

    • Implement the stage of measuring the impact of the projects on the national agendas of the Investment Facilitation Instance of the Pacific Alliance.

     

  • The Puerto Vallarta Declaration – July 2018

    • Establish a permanent public-private dialogue mechanism between the Services and Capitals Technical Group and the CEAP to use the Pacific Alliance Investment Facilitation Authority (IFIAP, by its acronym in Spanish).

     

  • The Cali Declaration – June 2017

    • Develop cooperation actions and exchange of good practices in the area of trade-in services statistics among the member countries of the Pacific Alliance

    • Identify regional projects that make up the work agenda of the Investment Facilitation Initiative of the Pacific Alliance.

    • Promote the Investment Facilitation Initiative of the Pacific Alliance (IFIAP, by its acronym in Spanish), as an instrument to promote actions to address and provide solutions to investment barriers. The group of services and capitals will inform the Free Trade Commission about the identified obstacles that have not been removed, to adopt the solution actions.

     

  • The Puerto Varas Declaration – July 2016

    • Advance the voluntary registration of professionals of the Pacific Alliance.

    • Evaluate, in coordination with the Ministries of Finance, the existing barriers in tax and customs matters in order to promote and facilitate the export of services among the member countries of the Pacific Alliance.

     

  • The Paracas Declaration – June 2015

    • Develop standards and criteria for the provision of professional services that facilitate the movement of professional service providers in the region.

    • Start the construction of a Common Digital Agenda, aware that our integration into the digital world will have a decisive impact on our economic and social future.

    • Conclude the negotiation of the “Memorandum of Understanding among the Consumer Protection Agencies of the Pacific Alliance”, whose objective will be to establish a scheme of cooperation, mutual assistance and information exchange, in order to strengthen and improve orientation, protection and defense of consumers in the region.

    • Complete the development of the booklet for the Promotion of Consumer Rights.

    • Conclude the Study to identify good practices for attracting investments.

    • Finalize the assessment of barriers and opportunities for investment in the countries of the Pacific Alliance.

    • Develop projects that contribute to improving the investment climate and trade in services in the member countries.

     

  • The Punta Mita Declaration – June 2014

    • Continue developments in telecommunications and electronic commerce, in order to achieve deeper integration in accordance with international trends in these issues.

    • Prepare a study to identify the barriers and investment opportunity areas for a greater flow of capital within the region and beyond.

    • Work in a coordinated way on projects that contribute to an environment of greater certainty for investors.

  • The Cartagena Declaration – January 2014

    • To ensure that these first steps towards deep integration are sustainable and multiply, it is necessary to work on the mutual recognition or homologation of professional titles and licenses, and on the reduction or elimination of the restrictions that remain within the Alliance at a technical level and in terms of access to services and investment.

    • In the short term, we instruct: To our authorities to continue negotiations on air transport and other services, in accordance with the agreements adopted at previous Summits.

    • Share, within the Services and Capitals Group, experiences and visions on the topic of emerging capital markets and analyze their inclusion as part of the Pacific Alliance process, with a view to integrating them.

  • The Cali Declaration – May 2013

    • Conclude the negotiation of an Investment Chapter that improves investment protection standards foreseen in the previous bilateral agreements, that establishes complementary provisions to them and that reflects the best practices of the countries regarding the investor dispute settlement mechanism – State.

    • Conclude negotiations on financial services, telecommunications, maritime services and air transport. On Air Transport, achieve a first stage of agreements for cargo and passengers, with 3rd, 4th and 5th freedoms on intraregional flights between the countries of the Alliance without restrictions.

     

  • The Santiago Declaration – January 2013

    • During the first half of this year, the negotiations will have culminated in a set of areas and disciplines that deepen existing bilateral agreements among our counties (…) Services (including Financial Services, Maritime Transport, Telecommunications, Air Services and Professional Services); Investments.

  • The Cadiz Declaration – November 2012

    • The beginning of negotiations on Electronic Commerce in addition to the Free Trade Agreements in force among the countries of the Alliance; as well as, the evaluation of the feasibility of negotiating additional provisions to those established in the international investment agreements in force among the countries of the Alliance that incorporate last generation clauses, particularly in relation to sustainable investment and investment promotion and , if applicable, the respective negotiations will begin.

  • The Paranal Declaration – June 2011

    • Actions are developed to deepen the integration in trade of services and capital in the region, as well as to evaluate the need and convenience of negotiating an Agreement that covers the disciplines of investment and services within the framework of the Pacific Alliance.

      The sessions of the Mixed Joint Committee on Services and Investment, identifying the existing barriers are initiated, in order to facilitate investment and trade in services in the countries of the Alliance.

  • The Lima Declaration – April 2011

    • In a first stage, work in the following areas will be prioritized: business people movement and facilitation for migratory transit, including police cooperation; trade and integration, including trade facilitation and customs cooperation; services and capital, including the possibility of integrating stock exchanges; and, cooperation and dispute settlement mechanisms; and create technical groups for each of these areas.

Achievements

  • 2020

    • On March 10, 2020, within the framework of the 36th meeting of the Pacific Alliance Services Subcommittee in Lima, Peru, the Agreement for the Creation of a Voluntary Registry of Engineering Professionals of the Pacific Alliance was signed.

  • 2019

    • Launch of the initiative to facilitate investments in the Pacific Alliance with the support of the World Bank at the Business Summit of June 2017 in Cali, Colombia.

  • 2016

    • The Operating Framework of the Registry of Professional Services was agreed in order to promote the negotiation of License Recognition Agreements in the Pacific Alliance. It was proposed to start with the engineering profession and negotiations began between colleges and professional engineering councils.

    • The Professional Associations of Engineering, together with the relevant Ministries of Foreign Trade, began negotiations for the incorporation of the Operational Framework for the Voluntary Registration of Professional Engineers of the Pacific Alliance in each of the countries of the region.

  • 2015

    • The commitments on Electronic Commerce and Telecommunications were deepened in order to promote digital integration in the region.
    • The GTSC built the initial proposal for the creation of a Digital Agenda of the Pacific Alliance. This Project originated the creation of a new Digital Agenda Technical Group that would be in charge of developing the actions derived from this proposal.
    • The negotiation of the “Memorandum of Understanding among the Consumer Protection Agencies of the Pacific Alliance” and the Consumer Rights Promotion Booklet was concluded. These works were developed in the technical subgroup of consumer protection.

  • 2013

    • The commitments of Services in the Commercial Protocol of the Pacific Alliance were established in the chapters of Cross-Border Trade in Services, Investment, Maritime Services, Financial Services, Telecommunications, Electronic Commerce.

  • 2012

    • Creation of a Mixed Joint Committee for the improvement of the investment climate and the promotion of trade in services in the Pacific Alliance.

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Work in progress

  • Project with the support of the World Bank to reduce barriers to trade in services provided digitally and knowledge-based services. In July 2021, the terms of reference were defined that focus their work on 4 components: i) analysis of the intra-Pacific Alliance trade flow of services; ii) analysis of the profile and performance of SMEs that provide digital services and SBCs in selected sectors; iii) design and adoption of the action plan to reduce barriers to trade in services provided digitally and knowledge-based services, and iv) implementation and monitoring of the action plan.

  • Implementation of the Agreement for the creation of a voluntary registry of engineering professionals from the countries of the Pacific Alliance. Since the Agreement was signed in 2020, the Subcommittee has been working and accompanying the Councils and Professional Engineering Associations of the four countries to implement the agreement through the establishment of the voluntary registry of engineers.

  • The Services Subcommittee will continue with the next phase of the project work, convening the other Technical Groups and Committees of the Pacific Alliance that is related to the objective of the Project.

  • Development of the project with ECLAC to strengthen the statistics of international trade in services in the Pacific Alliance. The service subcommittee works together with the ECLAC team, the national statistical agencies and the central banks of the four countries in order to identify and implement the best practices in service statistics.

  • Regional Digital Market: the Services Subcommittee supports the initiatives and actions aimed at developing the regional digital market of the Pacific Alliance, framed in the Roadmap defined under the leadership of the Digital Economy Subcommittee.

     

CONSUMER PROTECTION

Who we are

From the Subcommittee on Services, the consumer protection agencies of the Alliance carry out joint and co-creation work to strengthen actions and activities aimed at protecting the rights and interests of consumers in the region and to global level, with special attention to those in situations of vulnerability.
The consumer protection agencies that are part of the Pacific Alliance Services Subcommittee are:

  • National Consumer Service (SERNAC) – Chile 
    • María Catalina Giraudo Ortúzar – International Affairs Coordinator – mgiraudo@sernac.cl
  • Superintendency of Industry and Commerce (SIC) – Colombia
    • Cristina Rodríguez – Head of International Affairs – crodriguezco@sic.gov.co
  • Federal Consumer Attorney’s Office (PROFECO) – Mexico
    • Ximena Galicia – Head of Department B – xgaliciap@profeco.gob.mx
  • National Institute for the Defense of Competition and Protection of Intellectual Property (INDECOPI) – Peru
    • Ana Peña Cardoza – Director of the National Consumer Protection Authority – apena@indecopi.gob.pe

Achievements

  • In 2015, the negotiation of the MoU between the Consumer Protection Agencies of the PA was concluded.
  • Preparation of the Consumer Rights Promotion Booklet.
  • In 2021, the First Forum on Consumer Protection in Electronic Commerce was held.

Work in progress

I. Promoting online consumer protection and defense.

  • Ensuring recognition of consumer protection laws applicable to electronic commerce.
  • Pacific Alliance Discussion “Digital Consumer Protection in the Pacific Alliance: Progress and Challenges” held on August 23, 2021.

II. Promoting dispute resolution mechanisms that include cross-border operations.

  • Digital Platform and Interoperable Mobile Application for the Solution of Consumer Claims for the Member Countries of the Pacific Alliance facing the COVID-19 pandemic and post-pandemic.

III. Other initiatives

  • Approaching to observer countries of the Pacific Alliance in terms of regulatory compliance and cooperation between consumer protection authorities.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES

Agreement to establish the Pacific Alliance Voluntary Registry of Engineering Professionals

REPRESENTATIVES OF THE FOUR COUNTRIES OF THE PACIFIC ALLIANCE AT THE SIGNING OF THE AGREEMENT

The “Agreement for the Creation of a Voluntary Registry of Engineering Professionals of the Pacific Alliance”, was signed on March 10, 2020 in the city of Lima, during the Meeting of the Technical Group of Services and Capital (now, Subcommittee of Services) of the Pacific Alliance, within the framework of the “XXXVII Round of Technical Groups/Committees, National Coordinators and LIII Meeting of the High Level Group”.

  • The Agreement allows Alliance engineers to join a Voluntary Registry of Engineering Professionals.

  • The Registry will facilitate the visibility of engineers for companies in the four countries, with the support of the Associations and Professional Councils of the Alliance.

  • The engineer incorporated into the Registry will assume the duties and responsibilities required of the professionals of the respective country.

As we have stated since the signing of the Agreement, the countries of the Pacific Alliance accompany and support the correct implementation of this Agreement. It is in the development of such commitment that we are pleased to invite you to participate in the virtual seminar that the delegates of the Services Subcommittee will hold to present the Agreement.

On July 30, 2021, the Pacific Alliance, together with the Councils and Colleges of Engineering Professionals of the four countries, held the virtual seminar: “Presentation of the Pacific Alliance Voluntary Registry of Engineers.”

Signing of the Agreement by the Colleges and Councils of Engineering Professionals of the Pacific Alliance

With the participation of the College of Engineers of Chile; the National Professional Council of Engineering of Colombia, the Professional Council of Chemical Engineering of Colombia, the Professional Council of Petroleum Engineering of Colombia, the National Professional Council of Electrical, Mechanical Engineering and Related Professions of Colombia, the Professional Council of Transportation and Roads from Colombia, the Professional Council of Naval Engineering of Colombia; the Secretariat of Public Education of the United Mexican States, through the General Directorate of Professions, the Technical Advisory Commission for Engineering of the United Mexican States, the Mexican Committee for the International Practice of Engineering of the United Mexican States; and the College of Engineers of Peru.