The governments of Chile and Peru inaugurated on Monday (16.10.2017) the Chacalluta-Santa Rosa integrated customs complex on the border of both countries, through which approximately seven million people and one million vehicles will cross annually.
The event was attended by the Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs of Chile, Edgardo Riveros, and the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru, Ambassador Néstor Popolizio; in addition to the Mayor of Arica and Parinacota, Gladys Acuña, and the Regional Governor of Tacna, Omar Jiménez.
At the ceremony, Riveros noted that “We are honoring the word that Peruvians and Chileans committed to improve our relationship., to make it more fluid, for the benefit of our fellow citizens.”
"This is how we make brotherhood a reality in Latin America and particularly in this segment of the Southern Cone of our continent," the authority emphasized.
He assured that for Chile The border complex “is an essential step” as it will mean a greater flow of people on land and practically similar to the airport flow originating at the Santiago international airport, more than six million people.
Chacalluta Photo: Chilean Customs
For his part, the Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru, Ambassador Néstor Popolizio, also highlighted the implementation of integrated control because it means a transit "more fluid, more efficient and more agile to boost trade and tourism"This is felt by the people who see the time spent on these controls reduced by 50 percent," added Popolizio.
The enabling of the juxtaposed system meant a investment of 500 million pesos (about 800 thousand dollars) and a series of adjustments to the Chilean and Peruvian facilities, in such a way as to allow all exit control from Chile to be carried out at the Peruvian complex in Santa Rosa, and entry control to our country at Chacalluta.
Chilean Customs Director Claudio Sepúlveda said that the Chacalluta border complex is of vital interest to Chilean Customs, “since it is the land crossing with the highest passenger traffic.”
Meanwhile, the National Superintendent of Customs Control of Peru, Gustavo Romero, said that the integrated control with Chile is the first of its kind in its country. and serves as a model for the establishment of a binational center that iwill open in February next year with Bolivia, to which is added a similar work in Tumbes with Ecuador.
Regarding the Santa Rosa-Chacalluta control, he said that so far “the evaluation is very good and expectations are very high. We consider it a perfect border because it is not perforated as it has a single route, to which is added the constant information and cooperation of customs.”
"It is a work in progress, which is well underway and will be an example for other borders," Romero stressed. In recent years, the link between the border cities of Arica (Chile) - 2.050 kilometers north of Santiago - and Tacna (Peru) has deepened in different fields, such as tourism, trade, services, health, transportation, among others.
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