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With A Focus On Industrialization, Attracting Foreign Investments, Expansion Of The Maquila, Intensive Use Of Renewable Energy And Regulatory Reforms, The Government Bets On A Long-Term Plan To Transform The Economy Of Paraguay, Increase Exports, Generate Jobs And Double GDP In Just A Decade
The Economy Of Paraguay Is Showing Great Signs. The Country Ended 2025 With US$ 1.309 Billion In Maquila Exports, An 18% Growth In Formal Employment And A State Plan To Double The Gross Domestic Product In Ten Years, Combining Industrial Incentives, River Logistics, Renewable Energy And Focus On Value Added, According To Official Data And Strategies Recently Released.
NOTE: Maquila Is A Special Industrial Regime That Allows Foreign Companies To Produce In Paraguay With Very Low Taxes, Provided That Most Of The Production Is Exported.
The Paraguayan Maquila Registered Record Results Again In 2025, Consolidating Itself As One Of The Main Vectors Of Job Creation And Exports In The Country.
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He sold his share for R$ 4 thousand, saw the company become a giant worth R$ 19 trillion, and missed the opportunity of a lifetime.
The Data Was Presented By The National Secretariat Of The Maquila Industry Of Export, Linked To The Ministry Of Industry And Commerce.
The Total Export Value Under The Regime Reached US$ 1.309 Billion, Reinforcing The Importance Of The Transformation Industry For An Economy Historically Focused On The Export Of Raw Materials. The Result Marks Another Year Of Continuous Growth For The Sector.
Of The Amount Exported, US$ 1.262 Billion Corresponded To Consumer Goods And Tangible Products. Another US$ 47 Million Came From Intangible Services, A Segment That Is Beginning To Gain Ground Within The Structure Of The Maquila And Expands The Scope Of The Regime.
Impact On The Labor Market And The Economy Of Paraguay
The Growth Of Exports Had A Direct Impact On The Labor Market And The Economy Of Paraguay. In 2025, The Maquila Recorded An Annual Growth Of 18% In Formal Employment, Totaling 35,357 Active Positions, Equivalent To The Creation Of 5,401 New Jobs Compared To 2024.
According To The Interim Head Of The National Secretariat Of The Maquila Industry Of Export, Diego Peyrat, The Sector Not Only Surpassed The US$ 1 Billion Mark In Exports But Also Strengthened Its Social Role By Increasing The Generation Of Formal Jobs.
These Results, Released By The Portal Abc.com.py, Position The Maquila As One Of The Pillars Of The Paraguayan Strategy For Industrial Growth And Regional Integration, With Direct Effects On Income, Employment And Productive Diversification.
Auto Parts Lead, But The Productive Structure Diversifies
The Composition Of Exports Shows That The Paraguayan Maquila Remains Anchored In Industrial Sectors Integrated With The Regional Market. Auto Parts Led Exports In 2025, Accounting For 34% Of The Total Exported Under The Regime.
In Second Place Are Clothing And Textile Products, With A Share Of 16%. This Segment Is Considered Strategic Due To Its Capacity To Absorb Labor And The Constant Product Renewal Dynamics.
Aluminum And Its Manufactures Accounted For 14% Of Exports, While Food Products Represented 12%. Plastics And Pharmaceutical Products Combined For 6% Of The Total, Highlighting The Growth Of External Sales In The Pharmaceutical Sector.
The Main Destinations For Maquila Exports Continue To Be Concentrated In Mercosur Countries, Reinforcing Regional Productive Integration And The Importance Of The Block For The Paraguayan Industry.
The Textile Sector Concentrates Intensive Employment Potential
Within The Maquila Structure, The Clothing And Textile Segment Is Identified As One Of The Most Promising In Terms Of Future Expansion. It Is A Sector Characterized By Short Production Cycles And High Demand For Labor.
Industrial Lines In This Segment Can Employ Between 500 And 600 Workers In A Single Plant Dedicated To Garment Production. This Profile Makes The Sector Relevant For Employment Generation Policies At Scale.
The Secretariat Regularly Records Requests For Approval Of New Maquila Programs By Companies In The Textile Sector, Indicating Ongoing Interest In Expanding Operations In The Country And Taking Advantage Of The Regime’s Incentives.
2026 Combines Positive Expectations And Regulatory Challenges
The Prospects For 2026 And The Economy Of Paraguay Are Regarded As Positive, Though Challenging. The Paraguayan Government Expects That New Investment, Maquila And Production Laws, Approved The Previous Year, Will Expand The Potential For Growth In The Industrial Sector.
According To Peyrat, The New Regulations Should Specifically Strengthen The Maquila For Services, An Area That Already Has Exporting Companies But Tends To Gain Greater Legal Security And Predictability With The New Legal Framework.
The Macroeconomic Stability Of Paraguay, Combined With A Legal Environment Considered Clear And Competitive Production Costs Compared To Neighboring Countries, Is Seen As A Central Factor To Attract New Industrial Projects.
The Official Expectation Is That A Significant Volume Of New Ventures Will Be Presented Throughout 2026, Expanding Both The Export Base And The Generation Of Formal Jobs.
Services Enter The Radar Of The Maquila
The Expansion Of The Maquila For Services Represents A Relevant Shift In The Traditional Logic Of The Regime, Historically Associated With Physical Industrial Production. With The New Legislation, The Government Seeks To Attract Companies Focused On Exporting Services.
The Strategy Includes Increasing Legal Security For This Type Of Operation And Encouraging The Hiring Of Local Labor, Especially In Activities That Require Technical Qualification.
Diversification Into Services Is Seen As A Tool To Reduce Exclusive Dependence On Manufactures And Enhance The Resilience Of The Paraguayan Export Base.
Paraguay 2X Plan Targets Doubling GDP In Ten Years
In Parallel To The Performance Of The Maquila, Paraguay Has Structured A Long-Term Industrial Strategy Known As Paraguay 2X. The Plan Aims To Double The Size Of The Economy Over A Ten-Year Horizon.
Currently, The Country’s Gross Domestic Product Is Around US$ 45 Billion. Doubling This Value Would Mean Reaching A Level Close To US$ 90 Billion By The Middle Of The Next Decade.
According To The Deputy Minister Of Industry, Marco Riquelme, The Country Has Structural And Macroeconomic Conditions To Sustain This Leap, Provided It Can Accelerate The Process Of Industrialization And Value Addition.
The Strategy Was Detailed In A Report By Forbes Magazine And Involves Concentrating Efforts On The Sectors Considered Strategic For International Competitiveness.
International Visibility As A First Step
According To Riquelme, One Of The Main Initial Challenges Of The Plan Is To Increase Paraguay’s International Visibility As A Destination For Productive Investments. The Country, He Says, Still Faces A Deficit Of External Knowledge About Its Competitive Advantages.
In This Context, The International Agenda Of President Santiago Peña Is Seen As A Central Tool To Inspire Confidence And Attract Investors, Positioning Paraguay As A Viable Regional Alternative.
The Logic Is To Show That The Country Already Has Regulatory Frameworks, Macroeconomic Stability And Structural Conditions To Receive Medium And Large-Scale Industrial Projects.
Focus On 27 Products And Four Strategic Verticals
The Paraguay 2X Plan Identified 27 Products In Which Paraguay Has Clear Conditions To Compete In International Markets. These Products Were Grouped Into Four Major Strategic Verticals.
The First Vertical Is Food, Leveraging The Country’s Strong Agricultural Base And Seeking To Advance In Processing And Generating Value Added.
The Second Vertical Is Metalworking, Linked To Both Agribusiness And The Regional Industry, With Potential For Integration Into More Complex Productive Chains.
The Third Corresponds To The Forestry Sector, Focusing On Furniture, Pulp And Industrial Derivatives. The Fourth Vertical Involves New Technologies, Such As Power To X, Artificial Intelligence And Energy-Intensive Activities.
Cheap Energy As A Structural Advantage
The Availability Of Abundant, Low-Cost Electricity Is One Of The Central Pillars Of Paraguay’s Industrial Strategy. The Country Generates And Consumes Electricity From Almost 100% Renewable Sources, From Hydroelectric Plants.
This Characteristic Supports The Attraction Of Electrointensive Industries, Although The Government And The Private Sector Emphasize The Importance Of Prioritizing Activities That Generate Jobs And Value Added.
There Is Concern About Activities That Consume Energy But Employ Few Workers, Which Could Limit The Social Gains Of The Model In The Long Term.
Tax Incentives And Regulatory Environment
<pRegimes Like The Maquila, Law 60/90 And New Regulations For High-Tech Goods Comprise The Incentive Package Used By Paraguay To Compete For Industrial Investments.
These Instruments Were Recently Updated, Aiming To Expand Their International Dissemination And Reinforce The Country’s Competitiveness In An Increasingly Restrictive Fiscal Regional Environment.
From The Business Perspective, Paraguay Differentiates Itself By Lower Tax Burden, Lower Incidence Of Indirect Taxes And Simpler Bureaucratic Processes Compared To Other Mercosur Countries.
Mercosur And Regional Integration
Despite The Existing Trade Integration, Paraguayan Authorities Evaluate That Mercosur Still Lacks A Clear Identity As An Integrated Industrial Block. Investors Tend To Analyze Brazil, Argentina, And Uruguay In Isolation.
Progressing Towards A More Integrated Vision Could Enhance The Attractiveness Of The Regional Market As An Economic Unit, Facilitating Larger-Scale Investment Decisions.
Logistics And The Paraguay–Paraná Waterway
Logistics Is Another Central Axis Of The industrial Strategy. There Are Persistent Misconceptions About Paraguay’s Logistical Costs That Ultimately Exclude The Country From Initial Analyses By Investors.
To Address This Problem, The Government Seeks To Strengthen The Brand Of The Paraguay–Paraná Waterway As A Strategic Transport Corridor. The Route Extends Over 3,400 Kilometers.
More Than 80% Of Paraguay’s Foreign Trade Is Transported By This Waterway, Which Allows For The Movement Of Large Volumes At Lower Costs Compared To Road Transport.
Territorial Planning And Industrial Parks
Domestically, The Government Operates On Three Fronts To Sustain Industrial Growth. The First Is Territorial Planning, With A New Industrial Parks Law.
The Objective Is To Better Coordinate Land Occupation, Delimiting Industrial And Urban Areas In Conjunction With Municipalities, Reducing Conflicts And Increasing Logistical Efficiency.
Financing As A Structural Bottleneck
The Second Axis Is Financing. The Government Itself Acknowledges That The Country Still Lacks Sufficient Instruments To Offer Long-Term Credit At Lower Rates For Industrial Investments.
The Strategy Involves Working With The Banking System And Public Banking To Develop Alternatives That Facilitate Larger Projects With Longer Maturation Periods.
Skills And Human Capital
The Third Axis Is Labor Training. Industrial Expansion Requires Alignment Between Professional Training And The Demand Of New Industries Setting Up In The Country.
Training Institutions And Technical Universities Are Called To Play A Central Role In This Process. Still, There Is Recognition That Companies Themselves Will Have To Invest In The Training Of Workers.
Representatives Of The Private Sector Warn That Human Capital May Become The Main Bottleneck Of The Model, Both In Training And In Retaining Talent In A More Dynamic Market.
Added Value As A Central Goal
Industrialization Is Presented As A Way To Increase The Value Of Paraguayan Exports. Transforming Soybeans Into Animal Protein Or Corn Into Processed Foods Means Changing The Price Levels Per Ton Exported.
This Movement Has A Direct Impact On The Generation Of Foreign Exchange And On The Salaries Paid Internally. Exporting Finished Products Allows For Greater Compensation For Labor Than Selling Raw Materials.
The Logic Advocated Is That Industry, Agriculture, And Services Do Not Compete With Each Other, But Complement One Another In An Integrated Economic Development Model.
An Executing Model
With Tax Incentives, Renewable Energy, River Logistics, Territorial Planning And A Focus On Training, Paraguay Seeks To Establish Itself As A Regional Productive Platform.
The Challenge Is To Rapidly And Coherently Execute A Model Capable Of Transforming Structural Advantages Into Sustainable Long-Term Economic Development, Maintaining The Growth Pace Observed In 2025 And Responding To An Increasingly Competitive And Volatile International Scenario, Where Rapid Decisions And Institutional Coordination Will Be Determinants For The Country’s Success, Even In The Face Of Historical Limitations In Financing And Professional Training That Still Need To Be Overcome Over Time.
This Article Was Prepared Based On Information Published By The Portal abc.com.py About The Performance Of The Paraguayan Maquila In 2025 And The Analyses By Forbes Magazine Regarding The Paraguay 2X Plan And The Paraguayan Industrialization Strategy To Double Its Economy In Ten Years.
Que Seja! Que Deus os ajude! E não se entreguem aos EUA e China!
Vejo um novo horizonte e dias de progresso sobre o Paraguai, graças a um governo, que se dispõe em trabalhar em favor do país , unindo o utilizando não só a responsabilidade fiscal do país com um tempo favorável a o crescimento desse país.
Desejo boa sorte ao Paraguai e seu povo que DEUS abençoe essa linda nação em nome do SENHOR JESUS CRISTO Único DEUS Verdadeiro de todas as nações.
Falar todos falam. Quero ver é o resultado. Duvido um aumento do PIB de 100% em 10 anos. Ademais, o povo não se alimenta de PIB, se o crescimento for acompanhado de concentração de renda, de que adianta para o povo. Também, se não estiver nos planos o mercado interno, o PIB será pode até ser grande, mas se a economia for basicamente exportadora, os exportadores ficarão com a renda (os produtos estão saindo do país – não que seja ruim, mas tem de fazer parte de uma engenharia econômica bem mais complexa), a população com o trabalho com salários baixos e o PIB “bonito”. Um PIB alto não é um fim mas um meio. Vamos deixar de lado as tendências políticas e as paixões de lado e avaliar com bases sólidas cada notícia. Enquanto isto acontecer será sempre uma infrutífera guerra de torcidas e nada mais. Espero sinceramente que não apaguem meu comentário de novo.