Why partner with Mexico?

By Ernesto Cespedes, Ambassador of Mexico in Finland

In August 2022, Business Finland and the Finnish-Latin American Business Council invited me, along with my Latin American colleagues in Helsinki, to take part in the seminar: Why partner with Latin America? - Learnings and successful cases from Finnish companies. The question, which can be addressed from many different angles, led me to revisit the opportunities that my country offers to Nordic companies and the actions that Mexico has set in motion to strengthen its position as one of the most attractive investment destinations worldwide.

Shortly after the seminar, the Government of Mexico —through its Ministry of Economy– presented the strategy “Towards an industrial policy”, a roadmap that aligns the efforts of public and private stakeholders towards an economic model oriented to inclusive growth through technological updating, an increase in national content and the development of human capital.

In brief, the strategy is made up of four transversal axes designed to meet the needs of industry: innovation and technological-scientific trends; training of human capital for new trends; promotion of regional content; and sustainability and sustainable industries. The actions implemented will have an impact mainly on five strategic sectors: agri-food; electrical-electronics; electromobility; medical and pharmaceutical services; and creative industries.

The strategy unfolds into concrete actions like making 50% of the vehicles produced in Mexico zero-emissions by 2030; increasing the production of electric and hydrogen-running vehicles for public and freight transport; promoting the use of robotics and artificial intelligence in the electromobility sector; reskilling programs to update workers before automation; strengthening curriculum on cyber engineering, software, semiconductors, robotics, logistics, coding, and audiovisual direction; among many other goals regarding the circular economy, biopharma and global logistic chains.

“Towards an industrial policy” adds to the findings of the “Prospective Territorial Industrial Atlas for Investment Attraction” presented in November 2021 and created by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Mexico in collaboration with UN-Habitat and the UN Industrial Development Organization, which identifies five strategic sectors where Mexico can increase its market share, add value and expand its ability to create jobs, specifically: wind energy, pharmaceuticals, the aerospace, and agro-industries, and applications of petrochemical products. Both strategies are part of the tools that the Mexican Government has developed to ease and standardize the information that global companies need to know to invest in Mexico.

Today, more and more companies are seeking to diversify and relocate operations to minimize disruptions in their supply chains and benefit from a closer presence in North America, the biggest and most dynamic economic region in the world. Mexico’s strategic geographic location along with its trade integration with the U.S. and Canada derived from the USMCA (a high-standard trade agreement that substituted NAFTA), positions the country as a key player for nearshoring opportunities in North America.

I am positive that the industrial policy set in motion in Mexico will attract more Finnish companies seeking nearshoring opportunities in North America to embrace the benefits of adopting a friendshoring strategy with Mexico.