Curacao's free zones to promote closer ties with Cuba

WILLEMSTAD, Curacao, October 30, 2015.- A representation of Curinde, a company that manages two free zones and an industrial park in Curacao, will travel to Havana in order to promote closer ties with institutions dedicated to economic development in Cuba.

In an interview with Prensa Latina, Jacqueline Jansen, Curinde’s executive director, explained that the Havana International Fair (FIHAV 2015), scheduled from November 2 to 7, is a good framework to understand the Cuban reality and for strengthening ties.

“I believe that the most important thing is that this is a big step for creating new partnerships, for exploring, but also for making contacts and continue in communication. That is very important,” Jansen said.

“In Curacao, our main goal is to develop the economy of the island. We have 35 years of existence with great satisfaction, because we are determined and we know that we contribute … There have been good times and challenging times. The fundamental point is our contribution and we want to bring that experience to Cuba,” she said.

For his part, assistant manager at Curinde, Daniel Oleana, said: “Our goal on November 2-7 is to provide our businessmen with the opportunity to explore possibilities there, to make contacts, to create and foster ties and assess information exchange between the 2 countries and the organizations responsible for the free zones.”

Oleana added that representatives from nine companies will be attending FIHAV 2015 as an exploratory phase, because for many of them this will be their first visit to Cuba. “You can say that is the first step of many,” Oleana said.

Curacao’s free zones are part of the delegation of about 50 businesspersons that the island will send to the 33rd edition of FIHAV, to be held in Expocuba’s fairground in Havana.