Posted on 08/15/2006 7:51:32 AM PDT by hedgetrimmer
Senior business representatives from United States, Mexico and Canada plan to define priorities and discuss specific recommendations for enhancing North American competitiveness in an August 15 session of the North American Competitiveness Council (NACC) in Washington, officials say.
U.S. President Bush, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Mexican President Vicente Fox announced the creation of the NACC in March to provide recommendations on issues concerning North American competitiveness that could be addressed through the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP).
U.S. Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, Mexican Economy Minister Sergio Garcia de Alba and Canadian Minister of Industry Maxime Bernier met with North American business leaders to officially launch the NACC on June 15.
The NACC comprises high-level business leaders from each country who meet regularly with senior North American government officials to examine how the SPP could help companies in the three countries be more competitive in the global market and reduce the cost of doing business, and offer specific recommendations to cut red tape or eliminate unnecessary barriers to trade in North America. (See related article.)
As part of this process, the North American business leaders will convene at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Washington August 15 to discuss the proposed priorities and recommended action items to be submitted to regional officials at the next SPP ministerial.
The U.S. section of the NACC, for which the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Council of the Americas serve as the secretariat, developed a set of recommendations in areas including standards and regulatory cooperation, border security and infrastructure, trade facilitation and customs reform, innovation, external dimension and energy integration. More than 200 U.S. associations and companies contributed to the recommendations that will be presented during the NACC trilateral meeting, according to Luis Pinto, director of external affairs at the Council of the Americas. These recommendations, he added, “look not only at issues of immediate importance but also to providing medium- to long-term suggestions.”
Adrean Rothkopf, director of trade policy for the Western Hemisphere at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, said that the NACC offers the leaders of the North American private sector an important opportunity to collaborate both with each other and with the leaders in their governments to the benefit of the region.
“If we work together – focus on our shared agenda, willingly tackle tough issues, commit ourselves to seeking solutions rather than merely identifying problems – the NACC will become a vital instrument for our countries’ leaders and an important tool for all its peoples, its workers and its companies,” she said.
Under Secretary of Commerce for International Trade Frank Lavin said that the NACC can play an important role in the region.
“The more competitive North America is in the world economy, the better off U.S. businesses will be,” he said. “We look forward to receiving the NACC's priorities for the SPP, as well as its recommendations on how governments can partner with the private sector to enhance the competitive position of North American firms in the global marketplace."
For additional information, see Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America.
(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
So what did you tell them?
I wondered where they are holding the meeting and if the public was invited.
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