North
American Prosperity and Security
by
Adrean Scheid Rothkopf and Monica Guevara
On August 20-21, 2007 U.S. President George W. Bush, Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, and Mexican President Felipe Calderón met in Montebello, Quebec to discuss the opportunities and challenges facing North America and to establish priorities for further collaboration. The meeting agenda for this third annual North American Leaders' Summit included discussions on the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America (SPP).
The SPP was launched in March of 2005 as a trilateral effort to establish a cooperative approach to advance our common security and prosperity and to promote economic growth, competitiveness, and improved quality of life through greater cooperation and information sharing between the United States, Canada, and Mexico.
During this Summit, the Leaders met with members of the trilateral North American Competitiveness Council (NACC), an initiative that began in early 2006 when the North American Leaders recognized that to accelerate progress under the SPP they would benefit from direct advice from the private sector. So, they encouraged business leaders from all three countries to form the NACC to develop recommendations on ways to enhance North American competitiveness. While the NACC was expected to primarily develop recommendations that could be addressed by governments, the NACC was also challenged to provide suggestions on how the private sector might itself be part of the solution.
Since 1993, the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has contributed significantly to the economic growth of the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Overall trade in goods among these trade partners has tripled from $297 billion in 1993 to $884.4 billion in 2006, according to the U.S. Department of Commerce. To put it in perspective, daily trade between the three countries is about $2.4 billion. However, the emergence of China, India, and other new economic powers has presented new challenges to North America's competitiveness and threatens to erode advantages created by the NAFTA. Furthermore, almost 6 years after the events of September 11 the necessity of increased security to protect our people against any potential terrorist threat is still a top priority that is intertwined with the region's need to remain attractive for trade, investment opportunities, and job creation.
To address the challenges of boosting competitiveness while ensuring the secure and legitimate flow of goods and people between the United States, Canada, and Mexico, hundreds of companies, associations, and chambers of commerce throughout North America spent months in extensive consultations that resulted in the trilateral NACC's initial report, which was submitted to cabinet officers from all three countries in February 2007 in Ottawa. In Enhancing Competitiveness in Canada, Mexico, and the United States: Private Sector Priorities for the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America the NACC offers a total of 51 recommendations for actions in three critical areas, both within and building upon the SPP: border crossing facilitation; standards and regulatory cooperation; and energy integration. These recommendations were also organized into three time frames: those that can be accomplished in 2007; those that can be accomplished before the end of 2008; and those that will require additional time to address, with a goal of completion by 2010. This trilateral initiative received positive feedback both for reaching a high level of consensus between the private sectors in all three countries and also for helping the governments focus on pragmatic steps that can positively impact the region's competitiveness, while still ensuring safety.
The recent meeting with the Leaders in Montebello offered the trilateral NACC the opportunity to present the 2007 report, Building a Secure and Competitive North America: Private Sector Priorities for the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America. This document outlines the work that the NACC has done in its first year and a half, also offering reflections on progress and on the Council's mandate moving forward.
NACC members were delighted when Bush, Harper, and Calderón announced that the three countries have taken action on a number of their recommendations and have completed a North American Plan for Avian and Pandemic Influenza; a Regulatory Cooperation Framework; an Intellectual Property Action Strategy; and a Trilateral Agreement for Cooperation in Energy, Science and Technology. Tangible results or early indications of further cooperation have also been seen in a number of other areas highlighted by the Council, including for example: rules-of-origin requirements; movement of people through enhanced "trusted traveler" programs; emergency management and preparedness; and the movement of air cargo shipments, among others.
The NACC was also encouraged by the commitment of the Leaders to continuing the dialogue and by the fact that they directed their ministers to review the SPP process, focus on priorities, and deliver results. In some areas, however, efforts to make borders within North America more secure and more efficient have run into serious roadblocks and require additional attention from the Leaders to ensure that the collaborative spirit of the SPP is not undermined.
Initial feedback after Montebello indicates that the private sector looks forward to continued engagement and collaboration with the three governments to encourage them to make further progress and ensure that decisions about security and those impacting the economic vigor of our countries are mutually reinforcing. In addition, the continuation of these annual North American Leaders' Summits will ensure that the United States, Canada, and Mexico will continue to work together closely to ensure that the shared goals of enhanced security and improved global competitiveness are reached, thus strengthening the economy and safety of all three countries and the region.
However, critics of both the SPP and the NACC allege that that the discussions are a prelude to a European-style North American Union, that there are plans underway to build a NAFTA superhighway, and that a common currency dubbed the "Amero" is being created. While the Leaders tried to dispel these myths following the Summit, the fact that these concerns exist simply highlights that the three governments and the private sector must do a better job of communicating the benefits of these initiatives to the people of our three great nations. The NACC has worked hard to develop and propose practical and sensible solutions to some of the challenges that confront our economies. And the three governments are equally committed to improving the lives of people in all three countries. Yet, all of this important and valuable work risk reversal because of a lack of understanding about the goals and contributions of these processes.
Adrean Scheid Rothkopf
is Managing Director for North and Central America at the U.S. Chamber of
Commerce.
Monica Guevara is Director of North American Affairs at the Council of the
Americas. The U.S. Chamber and the Council of the Americas jointly serve as
the Secretariat of the U.S. Section of the NACC.