Posted on April 9, 2009 by Wendy Frost
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Following on the heels of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s visit to Mexico, Vicente Fox, the former president of Mexico, presented the keynote address at the Future Leaders Conference sponsored by the Congressional Hispanic Leadership Institute (CHLI) and the UTSA College of Business.
During his luncheon address to a crowd of more than 300 students, business leaders and elected officials, Fox discussed trade, leadership and immigration reform.
“The relationship between the United States and Mexico is complex and diverse,” said Fox, who was accompanied by his wife Marta Sahagún. “We are friends, neighbors and partners who worked together to build a future of understanding, economic growth and a better life for our citizens through NAFTA.”
Fox said that NAFTA was successful for Mexico. He noted that the per capita income increased from $3,500 to $8,500 under the agreement. He also promoted his vision that the United States, Mexico and Canada should expand on their current trade agreements and develop a more cohesive relationship similar to the European Union.
“I believe that leaders are created in every single human being,” said Fox. “The challenge is building leaders with ethics, leaders with moral values. The leadership of this great nation should go back to exercising compassionate leadership. I am optimistic that the new leadership in this nation provides a new hope for change between the United States and Mexico.”
Fox was president of Mexico from 2000-2006. His presidency addressed the issues of trade relations with the United States, the drug trade, governmental corruption and calming civil unrest.
“The call of action is in the hands of our leaders now,” he concludes. “I am not for open borders, but for an orderly immigration process. If we were wise enough, we would have solved the border issue by now.”
CHLI is a nonprofit, non-partisan organization based in Washington, D.C., that promotes the advancement of the diverse U.S. Hispanic community in the public, private and nonprofit sectors as well as in the international community.
The UTSA College of Business is one of the 40 largest business schools in the nation with more than 6,000 students and 37 graduate and undergraduate business programs. Accredited by AACSB International, the college is dedicated to raising its academic profile to become one of the best business schools recognized for developing “Knowledge for a New World.”
Please send your comments to: wendy.frost@utsa.edu
— Wendy Frost
