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International Is Back
by Carol Westmoreland
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After the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, there was a significant drop in interest in things international, both in Florida and the rest of the United States. Government, business, education, tourism – every aspect of Florida’s international participation was negatively affected.
The recovery process was not easy, but now the residents, businesses and governments of Florida are moving “full steam ahead” toward international expansion. There are a variety of unique, new opportunities for city governments to assist in the economic development of their cities through international relationships – because, as with all things, relationships are paramount!
The following is an update about what is happening throughout the state with a few of these international programs. It is designed to enable appointed and elected officials to establish relationships with the right people when they need help with international matters.
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Florida League of Cities Partners with League of Cities of the Philippines
The International City/County Management Association (ICMA), through a U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) contract, has asked the Florida League of Cities to partner with the League of Cities of the Philippines (LCP) for a nine-month exchange and technical assistance program. The goal of the exchange is to help the relatively new local government league with organizational development.
League President Clay Ford is planning to travel with ICMA and League staff to Manila on April 1 - 9, 2005, to meet for four days. The biggest part of this exchange will be for the LCP to receive mentoring and training in organizational and management development. The plan also is to host LCP officials and staff in Florida in May, so that they can learn firsthand about our programs. League and ICMA staff will travel back to Manila in July for a wrap-up of the technical assistance portion.
The LCP is a national association established in 1987. It has 117 city members and provides a number of services and programs. It has a staff of nine, some with little technical training. The organization is highly dependent on the international development community for funding of many of its programs. The group’s offices are located in Manila.
Speaking of international relations, have you visited the “International” pages of the League’s Web site lately? The League’s international program has grown since 1998 into a full membership service to member cities. The League offers ongoing training, travel, educational, Web-based and technical assistance resources to any interested party associated with or representing cities. The activities to meet the objectives have been guided by the city official members of the League’s International Relations Committee.
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The chair of the League’s International Relations Committee is J.J. Beyrouti, mayor of Redington Shores, and the vice chair is Roberto Alonso, vice mayor of the Town of Miami Lakes. Members of the committee are Chris Arbutine, mayor, City of Belleair Bluffs; Beverley Billiris, mayor, City of Tarpon Springs; Scott Black, League past president and commissioner, City of Dade City; Carolyn Brown Spooner, vice mayor, City of Starke; Rhonda Calhoun, vice mayor, City of Coral Springs; Cesar Carasa, vice mayor, City of West Miami; Jennie Celona, council member, City of Daytona Beach Shores; Richard Contreras, councilman, City of Melbourne; Robert DiNicola, mayor, City of Indian Rocks Beach; John Doglione, mayor, City of Dunedin; Ralph Fletcher, mayor, City of Lakeland; Clay Ford, League president and mayor pro tem, City of Gulf Breeze; Mary Lawson Brown, vice mayor, City of Palatka; Janet Long, councilor, City of Seminole; Don Maloney, commissioner, City of Holmes Beach; Wendell McKinnon, mayor pro tem, City of Kissimmee; Leanna Mirsky, commissioner, City of Lauderhill; Lou Ann Palmer, commissioner, City of Sarasota; Rocky Randels, mayor, City of Cape Canaveral; Dottie Reeder, League immediate past president and mayor, City of Seminole; Julio Robaina, League first vice president and council president, City of Hialeah; Donald Rosen, commissioner, City of Sunrise; Eric Smith, League past president and executive director, Center for Strategic Governance and International Initiatives; Carmela Starace, League past president and councilwoman, Village of Royal Palm Beach; Tom White, mayor, City of Vero Beach; and Earnest Williams, councilman, City of St. Petersburg.
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United Cities and Local Governments
Clarence Anthony, mayor of South Bay and past president of both the Florida League of Cities and the National League of Cities, has been elected treasurer of United Cities and Local Governments, an international municipal government organization. In addition, Florida League of Cities past presidents Dottie Reeder, mayor of the City of Seminole, and Carmela Starace, a councilwoman with the Village of Royal Palm Beach; and J.J. Beyrouti, mayor of the Town of Redington Shores, are members of the organization’s 300-member World Council, along with six other U.S. local elected officials who serve either on the Council (board of directors) or Executive Bureau (executive committee).
The Florida League of Cities has participated in this organization through the National League of Cities since 2000, when it was called the International Union of Local Authorities. The Florida League of Cities and its members now have access to a three-level coalition of municipal associations – individual leagues at the state level, the National League of Cities at the national level, and United Cities and Local Governments at the international level. This represents a significant network of cities around the world that can cooperate in the tasks of governing cities, towns and villages.
United Cities and Local Governments was created on January 1, 2004, following the merger of three diverse international organizations, each of which brings significant assets to the new organization. United Cities and Local Governments now has more than 1,000 member cities in more than 100 countries. Membership is open to individual cities, as well as national and regional municipal associations (state or provincial).
United Cities and Local Governments is building an Internet gateway to help cities all over the world access a comprehensive information center. This gateway also will facilitate the building of peer-to-peer relationships among mayors and councilors to support peace, social development and humanitarian efforts. As a result, United Cities and Local Governments can be helpful to the National League of Cities and to state leagues in areas such as international trade, business development missions and sister-city relationships.
To find out more information about the service programs at United Cities and Local Governments, please visit the organization’s Web site.
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Free Trade Area of the Americas
The organization known as Miami Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) is steering the effort to bring the Secretariat office to Miami, for the administration of an international trade agreement currently being negotiated by 34 Western Hemisphere nations. This agreement is intended to be the most far-reaching trade agreement in history. It is an effort to unite the economies of the Western Hemisphere into a single free trade agreement comprising 800 million consumers with a combined gross domestic product of $14 trillion. The FTAA process began at the Miami Summit of the Americas in December 1994, and negotiations are scheduled to be concluded by the end of 2005.
The people who oversee the Miami FTAA campaign and Florida’s role in the FTAA agreement are Gov. Jeb Bush; Manny Diaz, mayor of the City of Miami and chairman of FTAA Inc.; Ambassador Charles E. Cobb Jr.; and Jorge L. Arrizurieta, president of FTAA Inc., who directly manages the program. The Florida FTAA program also is guided by a board of directors and receives the full support and resources of all the state agencies under the governor, as well as Enterprise Florida.
Foreign trade, particularly with Latin America and the Caribbean, is crucial to Florida’s economy and prosperity. Already, trade among the 34 FTAA countries amounts to more than $750 billion annually – more than double U.S. trade with the European Union. Some economists project that the FTAA would boost U.S. exports by nearly $25 billion a year. Since a significant share of that trade would pass through Florida airports and seaports, our state would be a major beneficiary of the FTAA. The FTAA also would bring new direct investment and jobs to Florida.
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Out of Florida’s top 10 two-way trading partners in 2001, eight were in the Western Hemisphere: Brazil ($10.5 billion); Canada ($5.7 billion); the Dominican Republic ($4.95 billion); Honduras ($3.7 billion); Venezuela ($3.7 billion); Costa Rica ($3.3 billion); Colombia ($3.2 billion); and Guatemala ($3.2 billion). In addition, 83.2 percent of Florida’s total merchandise exports in 2001 went to Latin American and Caribbean countries, totaling $28.7 billion. The top two trading partners for Tampa/Jacksonville in 2001 also were from Latin America, and the Caribbean-Brazil ($1.12 billion) was No. 3, followed by Mexico ($700 million) and Venezuela ($683 million). With all these advantages, Florida continues gaining in importance as a global economic powerhouse.
For more information, please go to http://68.153.167.60/frontend/index.php or search the Internet for Miami FTAA. There are many good press releases that can bring you up to date on the group’s activities in Latin America. You also can call the FTAA office in Miami at (305) 476-5451 or fax (305) 476-5452.
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Governor’s International Program
The Executive Office of the Governor, Office of Tourism, Trade and Economic Development, has a team of foreign affairs specialists working with Enterprise Florida, the Department of State and the FTAA to successfully present Florida’s international opportunities to the world.
In addition to his participation in the Miami FTAA campaign, Gov. Bush continues his trade missions throughout the world, as well as his support of other trade agreements with individual countries. New market demands for Florida can be met through international trade. To maximize those efforts, the Governor’s International Business Forums have been held throughout the state to bring business and trade interests together for a common effort to support Florida internationally.
During the month of March, the governor will host three consular visits to Tallahassee. These events include receptions to greet Latin America and Quebec; the European Union, Japan and Canada; and Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and Caribbean consulates. The Florida League of Cities has been invited to present to these groups about our international program and the involvement of Florida cities in international programs.
For more information on the Governor’s International Program, please visit http://oir.dos.state.fl.us/ on the Internet. You also can call Tony Garrastazu, foreign affairs specialist, Executive Office of the Governor, Office of Tourism, Trade and Economic Development, at (305) 476-4840 or e-mail him.
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The Gulf of Mexico States Accord
This entity represents an international cooperative agreement, initiated in 1995 by the governors of the 11 Mexican and U.S. states along the Gulf of Mexico basin. Pamella Dana, director of the Governor’s Office of Tourism, Trade and Economic Development, is the Florida representative, and Manny Mencia of Enterprise Florida manages the Florida grant to the Accord Secretariat. Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco of Louisiana takes over as president of the Accord on March 7, 2005.
The Gulf of Mexico States Accord is involved, through its staff and executive committee, in such projects as the Red Tide Initiative; a Gulf of Mexico States Tourism Corridor; a change in travel visa status to Mexico for permanent U.S. residents; and a cooperation memorandum on short sea shipping in the Gulf of Mexico. This group is a resource to anyone doing business with, or involved in tourism issues with, Mexico or Mexican companies. It works closely with U.S. businesses and Florida universities to exchange economic development resources.
The states represented by the Accord are Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas on the U.S. side; and Campeche, Quintana Roo, Tabasco, Tamaulipas, Veracruz and Yucatan on the Mexican side. The Gulf of Mexico States Accord brings state-level leadership in a well-defined subregion of North America to define mutual interests, shape consensus and build political will for new regional initiatives in the areas of international commerce, homeland security, economic development, transportation, tourism and education. Policy officials, business executives, economic developers and academic researchers all actively participate in the Accord.
For more information, please visit the Gulf of Mexico States Accord Web site or e-mail Gary Springer.
Carol Westmoreland, associate director of membership development for the Florida League of Cities, coordinates the League’s International Relations Program.
Reprinted from Quality Cities March/April 2005
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