On Oct. 13 in Mexico City, a joint task force of leading business and former government officials from both sides of the border unveiled "A New Vision for the U.S.-Mexico Border: Joint Solutions for Common Problems." The report acknowledges that often policymakers in each nation's capital are far removed from the unique dynamics, challenges and opportunities that converge along the 1,954-mile border between the two countries. The work of the Pacific Council and COMEXI and our groups' recommendations on substantive policy changes, regulatory actions and reforms are driven by four over-arching provisions:
- a model of binational law enforcement in which officials from parallel, professionalized agencies work together as a matter of course;
- a coherent economic strategy for the border region, based on expediting legitimate commerce, relaxing federally-imposed restrictions on what border communities can do to build new infrastructure or provide better social services, and endowing existing development institutions with greater authority;
- intelligent management of shared natural resources; and
- a comprehensive, binational solution to migration.
You can read the executive summary online in Spanish, here, and in English, here.
