WorldCity Business Magazine

Q&A with Ana Guevara

by Mary Dempsey

When negotiators met in Miami to discuss an Andean Free Trade Agreement, Ana Guevara was never far away. UPS’s vice president of public affairs for the Americas turned up at the talks each day to make sure negotiators knew what her company and her industry in general hoped to see in the accord.

UPS has good reason to watch pacts like the Andean FTA. The Miami firm’s international operations drove revenues up 23 percent, to $2 billion, in the second quarter of 2005. UPS posted profit of $986 million, up 21 percent for the same period.

You’re a regular fixture at these trade meetings.

I’ve been to the negotiations in Quito, Guayaquil, Peru. There’s usually a large contingency in the private sector. At some rounds, I’ve seen as many as 1,000 people all together. So it’s not as if I’m the only one.

Any celebrity spottings in Miami?

The person who comes closest is Regina Vargo [chief U.S. negotiator for the Andean FTA]. She’s famous in these circles.

How do you make sure UPS’s position is known?

I meet with negotiators prior to the talks and let them know what UPS is looking for in this round, what I think that the others countries might have as a negotiating position.

Where would we have found you during the Miami talks?

I’m not allowed in the negotiating room. I sit outside the room. Sometimes a negotiator may come out or may send one of his or her assistants. They have my cell phone number and they can call me. I make myself available. I try to get briefs if they need additional information.

So your discussions take place right in the hallways?

During the talks there are also meeting rooms, break-out rooms. Each of the countries usually has a room where private sector and congressional members can meet and have private briefings. You’ll see private industry hanging out in those rooms, too.

Don’t you also talk to negotiators in your capacity as vice chair of CLADEC, the Latin America Conference of Express Companies?

I’m talking to them as UPS, but we really try to have an industry-wide position. We try to have a coalition position with DHL and FedEx. And we try to work with the local express associations in the other countries. We talk from a unified position. We have the interest of a wide range of players, not just one company.

What is that unified position?

When you have a free trade agreement, you’re opening up markets. You’re reducing tariffs so there will be more trade between the countries. From our position as an express delivery and logistics company, the more trade there is, the more opportunity there is for us to grow.

Beyond that, are there specific policies you look for?

No. 1 is that we look for recognition of our sector as a unique sector, because our industry is new, vibrant, growing. We don’t fall into the area of trucking or air or Customs brokerage. We’re not a courier. In some countries, they want to call us a postal service. But in the Andean Free Trade Agreement we want a definition that really clarifies what we do. That will help us in the long run and it will open the door to making long-term investments in the countries because then we know that we’ll be subject to rule of law.

Does it look like you’ll get that assurance with the Andean FTA?

We got it in the Chile agreement with the U.S., we got it in the Central America Free Trade Agreement. Of course, anything can happen. But I don’t think that at this point it is going to be a problem.

What about provisions in the agreement related to Customs and security inspections?

We need to have clearance in a much faster, urgent way than regular cargo. In our business we’re time definite and we’re fast. We tried to put in the agreement time limits or technology provisions. In the end, these provisions are really just best practices from around the world.

Do the Andean countries pose a particular problem in that regard?

Latin America is probably one of the least advanced regions we work with as far as modernization, as far as having technology, as far as having quick systems in place. That’s why it’s extremely crucial to get these provisions in the Andean FTA. We look at it from the perspective that it’s not only going to make our service better, it’s going to make these countries more competitive.

Is speed the factor that’s most troublesome, then?

One of the issues that probably affects us most in these countries is postal-related. In the U.S. there is recognition of UPS as a large multimodal operation. In many of these Latin American countries, we get an operating license as a courier service. In others, like Argentina, which is not part of these negotiations, we have to set up like a postal service. And that usually means some kinds of restrictions.

What kind of restrictions?

In some countries, for example, they’ve tried to establish that only the government’s post office can deliver packages.

Can you quantify how important these trade talks are for your company?

International business represents the future growth of our company. Our second quarter results were our highest quarterly profits ever, and international business is pacing that growth. We really see the growth of our company in the international area. For that reason, we want to open up the markets and make sure our investments are safe and secure.

How did this round of negotiations with Colombia, Ecuador and Peru go?

It’s just my guess but I think people feel there could be another two to three rounds before it’s finished. There is forward movement, but it’s not speeding.

Was there one delegation that dominated at the talks?

Colombia has had the largest delegation by far. You have a very sophisticated business sector in Colombia and a very sophisticated political sector. There’s a lot at stake for Colombia.

Any surprises?

I saw a lot of small and medium-sized businesses as well as chambers representing small and medium-sized businesses. But I was surprised that I didn’t seem more Miami businesses at these talks. It was much quieter than at other rounds. The private sector must have been at the beach.