Business · Trade · 5 hrs ago
Costa Rica to drop bid to join trans-Pacific trade pact
Costa Rica plans to drop its bid to join a trans-Pacific trade pact.
The bid was an effort by the country to become a member of the pact.
Dropping it would end Costa Rica's current membership effort.
The announcement concerns Costa Rica and the trade pact, but no further details were provided.
It is not clear what prompted the decision.
No next steps were stated.
Costa Rica has withdrawn its application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, President Laura Fernandez said on October 28.
Fernandez cited a lack of transparency in the negotiations and dismissed Foreign Trade Minister Indiana Trejos.
The decision followed protests from producer groups, especially in the agriculture sector.
Costa Rica applied to join the 12-member trade pact in 2022.
- Who
- Costa Rica's government, announced by President Laura Fernandez.
- What
- Costa Rica withdrew its bid to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership and dismissed Foreign Trade Minister Indiana Trejos.
- When
- October 28, 2026.
- Where
- Costa Rica.
- Why
- Fernandez cited a lack of transparency in the negotiations. Producer groups, especially in agriculture, had also protested the bid.
Costa Rican government
Costa Rican producer groups
Transparency
Costa Rican government
Fernandez said the agreement's full content was secret and criticized the negotiations' transparency.
Costa Rican producer groups
Producer groups protested Costa Rica's bid, but their specific reasons are not stated.
Joining the pact
Costa Rican government
The government withdrew the application.
Costa Rican producer groups
Producer groups, especially in agriculture, opposed the bid.
The CPTPP took effect after the United States departed from the proposed Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Costa Rica submitted a request to join the CPTPP.
The bloc formally invited Costa Rica to join.
Fernandez announced that Costa Rica was withdrawing its bid and that Trade Minister Indiana Trejos had been dismissed.
- Membership
- 12 CPTPP member nations
- Application
- Submitted in 2022
- Invitation
- November 2024
- President
- Laura Fernandez
- Dismissed minister
- Indiana Trejos
3 sources
What people are saying
Although it might seem like an excellent opportunity, its full content was declared secret by the negotiators to the point that almost no one knows what it entails