Conference

U.S.-Mexico Infrastructure: A Pending Agenda
June 2, 2008 at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, D.C.

About the conference:

NACTS, in collaboration with the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Mexico Instotute, sponsored a one-day conference analyzing the needs for infrastructure investment in Mexico, as well as ways for generating public and private investment in infrastructure and managing shared infrastructure resources.

The first in a series of meetings on developing long-term agendas for infrastructure cooperation between the two countries, the conference brought together information and insights to illuminate innovative mechanisms for binational (trinational and continental even) investment in the roadways, railways, and multi-model ports of entry to enable significant development south of the border.

The Mexico Institute at the Woodrow Wilson Center in Washington, D.C. and the North American Center for Transborder Studies at Arizona State University have joined capacities (policy and research, respectively) to examine the two regions as a complementary exercise in examining the numerous daunting challenges facing Mexico and the U.S.

Discussions and Conclusions:

The increasing economic interdependence between Mexico, Canada, and the United States has created important opportunities for cooperation in promoting investment in infrastructure. The growth in trade has heightened the burden on existing infrastructure in the border region between Mexico and the United States and requires urgent attention in order to eliminate hidden barriers to trade and improve the quality of life in border communities themselves.

It has also become increasingly clear that while most areas in North America have benefited from the deepening of market integration, some regions have been unable to participate effectively in the North American market. This is particularly true for some regions in the center and south of Mexico, which are poorly linked to global markets generally and the North American market specifically.

Papers Presented:

The conference included a series of background papers and panel discussions. NACTS provided four papers:

1. A retrospective on the model of the North American Development Bank as a stepping stone to a North American Investment Fund, written by NACTS board chair Raúl Rodriguez;

2. A meta-estimate of the infrastructure deficit by NACTS Director D. Rick van Schoik;

3. An overview of the state of international governance of border issues and of the Security and Prosperity Partnership process by University of Alberta professor Greg Anderson; and

4. A hypothesis about joint governance of finance, construction, and operation of facilities that benefit both sides by NACTS Associate Director Erik Lee.