The first boat from Venezuela arrives on Tuesday.
On July 18, 2023, Bonaire can welcome the first boat from Puerto Cabello. However, the goods are not intended for sale in the harbor. Instead, they will be imported by locally owned companies with the necessary permits.
Bonaire has been looking forward to the boats from Venezuela with vegetables, fruit, and construction materials for quite a few years. In 2019, Venezuela closed its maritime borders with Bonaire. The borders were reopened in April 2023, but the boats have yet to make it to Bonaire..
Deputy Jolinda Craane is enthusiastically looking forward to the arrival of the first Venezuelan ship. The OLB works with the authorities to make this possible. “The ports of Tucacas and Puerto Cabello that always served Bonaire were struggling with some challenges,’ says Jolinda Craane, the deputy in charge of economic matters. “Now they are preparing for it to resume maritime traffic between Venezuela and Bonaire.”
Venezuela closed its borders in 2019. Subsequently, the ABC Islands closed the borders because of the corona virus. Jolinda Craane: ‘In recent months, preparations have been made by the Public Entity Bonaire (OLB), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the port office, the quartermaster economy, customs and local agencies. They worked with Venezuelan authorities to make it possible again. If you look at the experiences on Curaçao and Aruba, you can expect that products will also be cheaper on Bonaire.”
Deputy Jolinda Craane sees the reopening of the maritime borders as an important first step for the inhabitants and the business community of Bonaire. “The boats make it a bigger supply of vegetables, fruit and building materials. This ensures lower prices and contributes to the efforts made by the Executive Council to increase consumer purchasing power to support. The Venezuelan supply complements the current supply on Bonaire. This offers opportunities for local retailers and importers.”
(Source: OLB)
