During summer 2023 the Georgetown Americas Institute hosted three events in the Latin America in the Global Economy program that brought together policymakers and other experts to discuss the growing trend of nearshoring investments in North America, particularly in Mexico. According to the 2023 World Investment Report, greenfield investment project announcements were up 15 percent in 2022, growing in most regions and sectors. Industries struggling with supply chain challenges, including electronics, semiconductors, automotive, and machinery, saw a surge in projects. Mexico has seen a substantial increase in investment inflows in the past two years. In 2022, Mexico received 35 billion U.S. dollars; in the first quarter of 2023, the amount of foreign direct investment (FDI) was 18 billion U.S. dollars. How can nearshoring enhance Mexico’s competitiveness and foster economic growth in North America? What domestic policies Mexico must implement in order to keep the investments going into the country?
These events responded to these questions by giving participants the opportunity to hear success stories from companies that have implemented nearshoring strategies and learn best practices that local governments are deploying to help companies navigate these associated complexities. The third session featured Manuel Alejandro González, Aguascaliente secretary for economic development, science and technology, Rodrigo Blanco of Tata Consulting Services, and Claudia Esteves of the Mexican Association of Industrial Parks. These panelists discussed strategies to encourage companies to invest in Mexico and the country’s challenges to becoming an investment hub, including security, land prices, energy availability, and water supply. The conversation was moderated by Juan Carlos Baker, a renowned expert in international trade, regional economic integration, and foreign affairs.
Featuring
Manuel Alejandro González is secretary of economic development, science and technology of Aguascalientes in Mexico. He has a degree in international trade with a specialty in agribusiness from the ITESM Campus in Monterrey. He has a master’s degree in management, innovation and technology, from the Pan-American Institute of Senior Business Management campus in Bonaterra. He is an entrepreneur with extensive experience in operations, projects, marketing and business management, holding positions as general director of agro-industries in Aguascalientes. He was formerly financial director of Nutrifreeze in Houston, Texas, a company dedicated to the commercialization of Mexican foods in the Hispanic market in the United States. He was president of State Agroindustry Centers and Committees, as well as a member of various producer councils of Aguascalientes. In public service, he headed the Secretary of Rural and Agribusiness Development of the state of Aguascalientes from 2016 to 2019. As of 2020, he holds the position of secretary of economic development, facing important challenges in a global context in order to maintain and boost the state's economy. With the generation of public programs and policies, he has strengthened the local community of entrepreneurs, micro, small and medium-sized entrepreneurs that make Aguascalientes more competitive. He has projected the state nationally and internationally with economic promotion strategies that manage to attract more and better investments, having in Aguascalientes an ideal destination to grow.
Rodrigo Blanco is head of corporate affairs for Latin America at Tata Consulting Services. Blanco is an executive with 20 years of experience in negotiations, international relations, and government. During the last 15 years, his work has been fundamental for the development and growth of the bilateral relationship between Mexico and India, promoting the attraction of foreign investment, export of goods and services, and the internationalization of Mexican companies, positioning both countries as strategic partners. His management in India as commercial counselor of the Embassy of Mexico and director of ProMéxico for South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation countries was essential to develop the relationship between both countries and the growth of the trade balance. He is also chairman of the Board of Directors of the India-Mexico Chamber of Business; advisor to Incubation Masters, an Indian start-up incubator; and visiting professor at various universities in Mexico.
Claudia Esteves Cano is executive director at the Mexican Association of Industrial Parks (AMPIP). She has had an outstanding professional career of more than 33 years committed to the development of Mexico. She has held positions in the banking and international promotion sector at Bancomext and ProMéxico in the areas of credit, design of financial programs, and promotion of trade and foreign investment in Mexico. These positions include: commercial counselor of Mexico in Italy, deputy commercial counselor in Germany, director in Veracruz, and executive director of strategy in the business intelligence unit. She was also a member of the negotiating team for the modernization of the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement (USMCA). She has given lectures of international relevance and has several publications on strategic industries in Mexico.
Juan Carlos Baker Pineda (moderator) is resident fellow with the Georgetown Americas Institute and a renowned expert in international trade, regional economic integration, and foreign affairs. His responsibilities in the Mexican government spanned over two decades, where he served as director general for North America, and deputy chief negotiator for Mexico in the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). Between September 2016 and November 2018, Baker served as the Mexican vice minister for foreign trade. In this responsibility, he designed and proposed to the minister of the economy and the president of Mexico the strategies to conduct and implement Mexico’s foreign trade negotiations in North America, Europe, Asia, and Latin America. During his tenure the Census Transportation Planning Products Program (CTPP) was ratified by the Mexican Senate, and he concluded successful negotiations to deepen and modernize the existing trade agreement between Mexico and the European Union. Similarly, he was a leading figure in the negotiations between Mexico, the United States, and Canada that eventually produced the United States, Mexico, and Canada agreement, which upgraded and modernized the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). On the multilateral front, Baker represented Mexico in several organizations, including the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), the G20, and the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC). Baker is currently the CEO and founding partner of Consultores Internacionales Ansley, a boutique consulting firm specializing in helping foreign governments and companies understand the changing international scene of politics and trade.