Trade promotion capacity building - Mexico
The Program, entrusted by the Ministry of Economy and the European Commission to ProMexico, has had an operating duration of 58 Months (2011-2016). Through PROCEI, 15 projects were carried out in 17 states of the Mexican Republic, supporting agroindustrial sectors such as coffee, honey, and avocado in Chiapas and Morelos, tequila and mezcal in Jalisco and Oaxaca; It also supported the "traditional" production, footwear, textile and jewelry in Jalisco and Puebla. Additionally, the Program included projects in advanced manufacturing, such as aeronautics, information technology, metal-mechanic, industrial design and plastics in Baja California, Mexico City, Jalisco, San Luis Potosi, Querétaro, Chihuahua, and Monterrey.
The European and Latin American Business Services and Innovation Network is a European Union initiative that promotes the EU economic presence in Latin America. Its objective is to boost the business opportunities for European and Latin American small and medium enterprises (SMEs), to strengthen the exchange of knowledge, technology transfers and co-creation processes through two interdependent strategies:
- European and Latin American Business Services (ELAN Biz): Providing information services to European SMEs interested in doing business in Latin America;
- European & Latin American Technology Based Business Network (ELAN Network): Promoting technology-based business opportunities between European and Latin American SMEs.
Since January 2017, ProMéxico became the Country Coordinator of the ELAN Network in Mexico within the project “Creation of a European and Latin American self-sustainable innovative cooperation Network (ELAN) of research and innovation (R&I) actors and industry partners to foster co-generated, technology-based business opportunities.” Automotive & Smart Tourist Destination and the technological domains of the action will be focused on these two sectors.
The Enterprise Europe Network (EEN) was introduced in 2008 by the European Union (UE) with the aim to support business opportunities in the EU for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). Meanwhile, the network counts with 600 member organizations from 60 different countries, including chambers of commerce and industry, technology centers, universities and development agencies. The EEN Mexico Consortium was created in 2011, supporting and improving the competitiveness of Mexican SMEs through internationalization, innovation, and technology transfer. ProMéxico is part of the EEN Network Mexico, together with the National Council of Science and Technology (CONACYT in Spanish) and the Technological Institute of Superior Studies of Monterrey (ITESM in Spanish) helps organizing events and identifying Mexican SMEs. Since then, ProMéxico has supported more than 400 companies through innovation workshops, and brokerage events of different international events. The program will run up to 2020.
The aim of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between ProMéxico, the Confederation of European Retired Experts, and the PUM Foundation of the Netherlands that presides the current Confederation, is to facilitate the transfer of knowledge to Mexican companies through advisory missions given by "PUM” and “CESES", providing high-level experts volunteering to support companies, principally small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), and business organizations in different sectors in Mexico. Since 2017, ProMexico serves as the link between the Mexican companies and PUM, identifying companies to promote the socio-economic growth of Mexico.
Low Carbon Business Action (LCBA) in Mexico is a program financed by the European Union whose objective is to reduce CO2 emissions in Mexico. Since 2016, ProMéxico is a collaborator of the program and responsible for the co-organization of commercial missions of European companies in Mexico and the diffusion of events. Furthermore, another objective of ProMéxico is supporting the internationalization of Mexican companies in the sectors of energy efficiency, waste management, and sewage treatment.
A Memorandum of Understanding between ProMexico and the Trade Facilitation Office of Canada (TFO) with the support of the Department Global Affairs of Canada Government was signed in May 2016 to promote and increase the capacity of institutions that foster the Pacific Alliance trade. Its aim is to provide tools, expertise, and training to potential exporters, especially SMEs, to have access to the Canadian market. Several activities were already carried out, for example, a formation for five ProMexico employees of the Agro sector that took place on October 24 to 28, 2016, in Ottawa, Canada. Also, four seminars are planned in Mexico for 2017 to share the information with more Mexican companies.