Belgian economic mission to Mexico and Panama

Transcription

1 Press release Economic mission to Mexico & Panama: March /05/ :00 Belgian economic mission to Mexico and Panama During this first joint mission of 2009, HRH Prince Philippe was accompanied by Mr Vincent Van Quickenborne, Minister of Economy and Administrative Simplification. Princess Mathilde accompanied her husband during the Mexican leg of the mission. In Mexico, the delegation was made up of 113 participants, representing 50 companies, with 77 participants representing 33 companies travelling on to Panama. WHY MEXICO AND PANAMA? Although these two Central American countries are situated very close to each other, they are quite different in cultural and economic terms. Mexico is quite Latin and is the most important industrial contractor of the United States, whereas Panama is more Americanised and mainly positioned itself in the logistics industry. The new mission to Mexico ties in with the excellent trade relations between Belgium and Mexico. In 2008, Mexico was Belgium s 37th customer ( million) and 33rd supplier ( 1.2 billion). On the global level, Mexico is the 14th biggest economic power in terms of its GDP, and the 15th global economic power according to the WTO ranking. According to Mexican statistics, Belgium is Mexico s 11th biggest investor, making it the 6th biggest EU investor. The mission contributed to the excellent bilateral relations. Moreover, the timing of the mission was also very auspicious: Mexico had just decided to implement an ambitious modernisation plan for its infrastructure and its economy was quite stable despite the financial crisis. The country is also an excellent platform for conquering the North and South American markets thanks to the NAFTA agreement. Panama also offers certain opportunities to Belgian companies. This was the first trade mission to this country. Belgium does not have an embassy or regional trade attaches in Panama. In 2008, the country was Belgium s 90th customer ( 78.6 million, +18.1% compared with 2007) and our 131st supplier ( 13.5 million, - 82% compared with 2007). Panama is Central America s logistics hub. The country s main asset is the canal. The works for deepening and widening the canal will last until In addition, the free trade zone to which the country belongs attracts several importing and exporting companies. OFFICIAL CONTACTS Mexico The following official contacts and meetings were scheduled in Mexico:

2 - HE Felipe Calderón Hinojosa, the Mexican President, and First Lady Margarita Zavala; - HE Ing. José Ángel Córdova Villalobos, Secretary of Health; - HE Georgina Kessel Martínez, Secretary of Energy; - HE Gerardo Ruiz Mateos, Secretary of Economy; - HE Beatriz Leycegui Gardoqui, Undersecretary for Foreign Trade; - Marcelo Luis Ebrard Casaubón, Head of Government of the Federal District; - César Duarte Jáquez, President of the Chamber of Deputies. Panama - HE Martín Torrijos Espino, Panamanian President, in the presence of HE Héctor E. Alexander, Minister of Economy and Finance and HE Ricardo Durán Jaeger, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs; - HE Rosario E. Turner Montenegro, Minister of Health; - HE Severo Sousa, Deputy Minister of Foreign Trade. KEY SECTORS Taking into account the specific characteristics of the Mexican market, the emphasis was mainly on the following sectors: infrastructure, ports and logistics, automotive industry, aviation, health, pharmaceuticals and food. The construction industry, in its broadest sense, as well as logistics and distribution were the key sectors during the mission to Panama. ACTIVITIES Mexico: - Health conference. This conference, headed by AWEX, welcomed several participants and was a perfect opportunity to promote Belgian know-how in terms of healthcare. Several products and high-tech installations were presented to a highly attentive audience. Vincent Van Quickenborne and José Ángel Córdova Villalobos, the Mexican Secretary of Health, served as keynote speakers at the conference. - Logistics and port infrastructure conference. The second conference was organised by FIT together with FITA (Flanders International Technical Agency). The Mexican participants could find out more about the industry and establish interesting contacts. - Cultural lunch and signing ceremony with BOZAR. - Tourism conference, organised by AWEX.

3 - PEMEX (Petróleos Mexicanos/ Mexican Petroleum) activity. BOG members (known as the Carbon Energy Club ; this club groups Belgian companies operating in the oil and gas industry, petrochemicals and in the power and water industries) from Agoria could thus attend an important working meeting, together with other professionals. Prince Philippe also introduced them to Mexican business leaders. - Networking lunch organised together with the Club de Industriales, ProMéxico (an institution of the Mexican government set up to strengthen the Mexican participation in the international economy and responsible for coordinating activities designed to attract foreign investments in the Mexican market) and COMCE (Consejo Empresarial Mexicano de Comercio Exterior, Inversión y Tecnología/ Mexican Business Council on Foreign Trade, Investment and Technology). The lunch focused on investment opportunities in Belgium and Mexico. - CERCAL-RIMS-CONACYT conference focussing on the collaboration between Belgium and Mexico. - Signing Ceremony (Dredging International, Applitek, SCK-CEN). - A breakfast conference organised by, among others, the Federation of Enterprises in Belgium (FEB) with the aim of informing Belgian professionals about the future developments of the Mexican economy. The conference was introduced by the renowned speaker, Dr Roberto Newell Garcia, CEO of the Mexican Institute for Competition (IMCO). Panama: - Information session about Panama, which was attended by all the professionals that joined this mission, to present local trade opportunities, to paint a picture of the Panamanian economy and to provide more information about the free trade zone. The activity ended with a series of testimonials and practical business tips. - Lunch conference about the construction industry (AWEX activity organised together CAPAC- Cámara Panameña de la Construcción/Panamanian Chamber of Construction). - Activity (presentation and visit) focussing on the Panama Canal. The official delegation met the CEO in charge of the canal, Mr Alberto Alemán Zubieta. The Panamanian President also attended this activity. The delegation visited the Panama Canal and the Miraflores locks.

4 - Visit to Dredging International and visit to the canal expansion project, attended by a large part of the delegation. The ACP directors of the Panama Canal gave a presentation on the canal expansion project during this activity. - Signing ceremony between Technum-Tractebel and ACP. - Presentation of the Turbowinds project in Panama. - Presentation and visit of the Cuidad Del Saber (CDS). This city of knowledge focuses on education, research and innovation, generating synergies between the academic world, scientific research, companies and international institutions. A series of B2Bs was scheduled with the representatives of the Belgian companies in the margin of this activity. - GDF SUEZ activity in Colón. The official delegation and various professionals travelled to Colón for a foundation stone laying ceremony for the new Bahia de las Minas power plant. This plant marks a turning point in Panamanian energy history given that it is the first thermo-electric plant with combined cycles. With a total capacity of 280 MW, this is the biggest installation of its kind in Panama. GDF SUEZ obtained a 51% stake in the Bahia Las Minas company.

5 FOR FURTHER INFORMATION Participant s brochure Mexico (Spanish version) Partcipant s brochure Panama (Spanish version) COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT Christelle Charlier Deputy Director Studies, Statistics and Communication Christelle.Charlier@abh-ace.be Kathleen Deridder Communications Manager Kathleen.Deridder@abh-ace.be ECONOMIC MISSIONS DEPARTMENT Rosemary Donck Press officer Rosemary.Donck@abh-ace.be Nele Demeulemeester Economic mission coordinator Nele.Demeulemeester@abh-ace.be Patrick Gillard Economic mission coordinator Patrick.Gillard@abh-ace.be Céline Vandermeersch Economic mission coordinator Celine.Vandermeersch@abh-ace.be WEBSITES BELGIAN FOREIGN TRADE AGENCY Belgium consists of three autonomous Regions that are committed to the support of their international economic development. The Wallonia Trade & Investment Agency (AWEX) fulfils that role for Wallonia, Flanders Investment & Trade (FIT) for Flanders and Brussels Invest & Export (BIE) for the Brussels-Capital Region. The Belgian Foreign Trade Agency is, in its capacity as a public institution, at the disposal of these three Regional authorities that promote exports, and also collaborates with the Federal Public Service Foreign Affairs. On the one hand it contributes to organising joint economic missions; while on the other hand it operates as an information centre that deals with the various aspects relating to foreign trade. The Belgian Foreign Trade Agency therefore organises, develops and disseminates documentation (i.e. information for exporters, foreign trade statistics, country reports, sectoral studies, advice on international legislation and regulations, etc.) about domestic and foreign markets as well as bilateral relations. That is how the Agency acts as a vast platform in which the Federal competence of international relations and the Regional competence of foreign trade meet.