THOUGHTS ON THE VISIT TO SAN ANTONIO BY MEXICO SECRETARY OF ECONOMY, IDELFONSO GUAJARDO

The Asociación de Empresarios Mexicanos is a business group located in San Antonio mostly made of Mexico national business leaders. It is chaired by my friend, +Eduardo Bravo.  Last night this organization hosted the Secretary of Economy of Mexico, Idelfonso Guajardo. My wife and I were privileged to be a guest of the AEM on such a distinguished evening. A packed house, sold out event where it was good to see old friends and pat many backs.

It is no secret that now more than ever Mexico plays a strategic role in trade not only in the NAFTA bloc but globally. A theme brought home by Secretary Guajardo. During the course of his presentation, he discussed how energy and manufacturing competitiveness were critical to the economic future of  Mexico and Texas, an intrinsic partnership no doubt. This is without question, especially with the reform packages that today go through the Mexico political system. Workforce development and logistics are a key component to all this. In reality, logistics is the basis of economic development. Without it, there would be no economic well being. The Secretary also talked about one of the most key topics which is regionalization. Regional project development and regional logistics are very deep economic development generators. The Mexico/Texas region is proof of this. Mind you, it is not northern Mexico alone but the country as a whole. Foreign direct investment (deep into the billions of dollars) representing a variety of industries has recently landed in the Corpus Christi, Texas area. This will have a healthy economic impact on Mexico and the same happens in reverse. In fact, I am the co-creator of a group called the South Texas Alliance for Regional Trade (S.T.A.R.T). It comprises the Port of Laredo, Port of Corpus Christi and Port San Antonio. The goal of this group is to promote economic development in the region.  If a project involves two of three ports then it is considered a success. This works.

With a behemoth supplier/customer immediately to the north, it is no surprise that north/central Mexico have reaped the benefits of this trading relationship. However, Mr. Guajardo pointed out, and rightfully so, that this economic flow has not been touching Southeast Mexico much, barely a trickle. This has been a concern as far back as I can remember. A region of vast natural resources and beauty, it represents some of the poorest areas of the country. The challenge is to bring the region to the economic standards that the rest of Mexico enjoys. These areas are oil rich which makes me think that foreign direct investment as a result of the energy reform may be one of the answers. This of course leads to infrastructure development. Southeast Mexico is geographically poised for potential seaport and supply chain infrastructure expansion. The port of Lázaro Cárdenas is a case in point. A port that has grown beyond expectations with state of the art equipment at world class standards. The development of logistics infrastructure in Southeast Mexico can only but help the development of trade with other markets in the Americas as well as other parts of the world. This is a key factor so as not to have a large piece of Mexico's trade and economic pie in the hands of one large trading bloc. Simply put: too many huevos in one basket. 

At the end of the day, economic prosperity for a nation is the most lethal weapon against violence and corruption.  Secretary Guajardo's message was clear: President Peña Nieto's administration is bringing Mexico up to par to compete efficiently in the global marketplace. A cause for optimism for the future of  North America.