Thursday, May 28, 2015

Build trust, the challenge for Mexico: Jose Angel Gurria – FORTUNE

LEIPZIG, Germany (CNNExpansión) – The recovery of confidence of citizens in government, and the success of structural reforms are the main challenges facing Mexico in Today, said the secretary general of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), Angel Gurria.

The challenges are not easy, since the Finance Ministry recently cut its growth range estimated for 2015 by one percentage point, Gurría nevertheless considered that the government of Enrique Peña Nieto is on the right track laws enacted on corruption.

Earlier in the interview, Mexican former diplomat was reelected as head of an international organization, news that was welcomed by several prominent politicians, including the president of Colombia, Juan Manuel Santos, who called Gurria telephoned [while this interview was done] to congratulate him.

It could be inferred that attention is that the South American country is in the process of joining the OECD, but it should also be noted that both characters are united friendship over 25 years ago, when they were representatives to the International Coffee Organization in London.

What Mexico needs to do to revive its economy?

Continue with reforms and work on items that are not in the productive sector, as adherence to the law, transparency, effectiveness and efficiency of the justice system. They are elements of quality of economic environment that are very important and complete the reforms, but without them the reforms also will not have the same impact.

-¿Los conflicts of interest of senior officials will remain attractive to the country?

Investors speak to us with their money, their investments, and we are seeing is a very important investment flows to Mexico in diverse areas such as the clusters aeronautical technology or automobile manufacturing and many other fields.

Mexico is maintaining an attractive competitiveness, if one takes into account the cost of production in the country and productivity, are becoming increasingly attractive, but also are beside the largest market (United States ).

Investors perceive our country as a platform for increasingly important production. Reforms are essential and that the Government focuses on issues like anti-corruption laws that were recently approved and the regulations against conflict of interest gives confidence and sends a message that the authorities know that it is a topic that is scaring people.

What are the challenges for Mexico

First: the challenge is implementation, implementation, implementation of the reforms already approved. Implement them. Second, these issues of context, rule of law, justice system, expeditious justice, transparency, integrity, issues of combating corruption, conflict of interest, because all these have to do with the confidence of economic agents, but also have to do with the confidence of people in government

Then, you see a crisis of confidence of Mexicans to the government?

I think what you are doing is approaching it is identified that there is a problem and addressed and says go for a law against corruption, for more transparency, before a legal framework that was inaccurate, it was vague, it is becoming a more precise and more transparent.

What can Mexico do to mitigate the effects of rising interest rates (in the US)?

The possibility or the risk of a greater turbulence about a possible normalization of interest rates is less and on the other hand normalization is good. It’s good to get back to normal, there is always to be in exceptional times.

We are not exempt that there may be some turbulence when rates rise again, but they will not gain too violent or too quickly, will be gradual and we are seeing increases in perspective medium and long-term interest rates low, very low.

Also in Mexico we have a very competent economic team. Secretary of Finance, the Central Bank governor, the secretary of economy are people of great experience, highly respected in the international arena.

What are the challenges Gurria at the OECD in its new mandate?

First serve members and this is achieved based that the OECD has the answers and is focused on the issues that are most important to members. We’re talking about the post-crisis era, how to restore growth, the level of jobs, reducing inequality and how to recover the confidence level that virtually all countries worldwide had a significant erosion under falling growth and rising unemployment and inequality.

People no longer feel that governments have the ability to solve my problem, mine, not in general but mine and the only way to recover on the basis of better results, growth, employment , on creating better opportunities and from the point of view of the efficiencies of economies increase productivity.

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