Senators Meet with Automotive Industry on COVID-19

Members of the Mexican Senate's working group on COVID-19 met on Friday with automotive industry representatives from INA, AMDA, AMIA and ANPACT to address the urgency of declaring the sector as an essential business. On March 19, the Mexican Senate created a working group to follow closely the developments on the COVID-19 situation in the country. The group is formed by members of all parties in the Senate and meets every week to follow the latest development.

The meeting was attended by Oscar Albín, Executive President of INA; Guillermo Rosales, Director General of AMDA; Fausto Cuevas, Director General of AMIA and Miguel Elizalde, Executive President of ANPACT. Sen. Alejandra Reynoso and Senators Nuvia Mayorga, José Ramón Enríquez, Miguel Ángel Mancera and Roberto Moya attended the meeting on behalf of the Mexican Senate.

Senators agreed to insist on behalf of the sector to the Health Council to formally state the declaration to label automotive industry as essential."

Three main agreements were reached by the end of the meeting. First, Senators will help to make official the President's remarks on April 8 intended to authorize automotive production to restart at the same time as the US’ and Canada's operations. Second, automotive representatives made it clear to senators that the industry provides 1 million jobs, which makes 3.6 million people dependent on the sector. Third, the senators agreed to insist on behalf of the sector to the Health Council to formally state the declaration to label automotive industry as essential.

This meeting takes place two weeks after AMIA, AMDA, INA and ANPACT issued the first press release asking government officials to declare the sector as an essential business, including the possibility to delay the enforcement of new rules of origin included in USMCA until January 1, 2021.