Mérida, Yucatán, August 22, 2020.- The Free Trade Agreement between Mexico, the United States, and Canada (USMCA) will allow the promotion of industries such as automotive and aerospace in the state, together with actions such as the establishment of new laboratories specialized in industrial logistics 4.0, design and digital manufacturing, this was announced by Governor Mauricio Vila Dosal during the Mexico-France Meeting for Innovation and Digital Transformation.
In the virtual conference “USMCA, challenges, and opportunities for the state of Yucatán”, the head of the Ministry of Economic Development and Labor (Sefoet), Ernesto Herrera Novelo, pointed out that the region “has a very important opportunity in Foreign Direct Investment, but also in being able to form supply clusters for different sectors ”.
Accompanied by Eduardo Solís, international consultant and member of the Executive Committee of the Confederation of Industrial Chambers (Concamin), and Alejandro Rojas, Trade and Business Development, of MSquare Consultores, the official pointed out that “traditionally, the textile and agro-industrial sectors have been the strongest for the state, but today we also have very clear objectives in the automotive, aerospace and aeronautical issues, as well as information and communication technologies ”.
“The periods of reconversion that the USMCA is providing us can be used by local companies to adapt their production lines, obtaining equipment, preparing training and certifications, so that when this returns to the expected levels in a year and a half or two, we will be a serious candidate to be supplying components for the aeronautical, aerospace industry and, in general, export manufacturing ”, he stated.
He also said that “in order for us to be successful we have to see which industries are growing. Statistics show that five million jobs have already been recovered in the automotive sector in the United States; This is a sign that this industry is one of the first that will be generating jobs and in the same way the issue of e-commerce ”.
In his speech, Eduardo Solís underlined the importance of Yucatecan companies making an effort to join global supply chains. “As a first-level supplier, but also as second-level suppliers, Mexico has a very wide opportunity and we have to work on this issue to incorporate them into these production chains, which are not only in the automotive sector but also in other industries,” he added.
For his part, Alejandro Rojas recommended continuing to work in a coordinated way with the private initiative, the public sector, and the academy, to jointly locate the local offer, analyze the profile of the state and its vocations, develop strategies to support companies to link to supply chains and consider in the long term vision where the new technologies are moving.
“The country and the state must lay the foundations that allow growth. This will lead us to specify where the state of Yucatán can generate a critical mass of suppliers and, on the other hand, commercial intelligence work must also be carried out to identify where the demand is in Mexico ”, Alejandro Rojas concluded.
