Surbana Jurong Presents Master Plan for the Transisthmic Corridor

Singapore-based Surbana Jurong, a global urban, industrial and infrastructure consulting firm, presented the final report of the Structural Plan and the Conceptual Master Plan of the Inter-Oceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (CIIT), which seeks to promote the economic and social development of Mexico’s southern region.

The CIIT is a high priority project for the government because it aims to connect the Gulf of Mexico with the Pacific Ocean. This connection will boost national and international investment, grow the national market and diversify economic activities in the region, reported La Jornada.

In January, Transisthmic Corridor Project Director Rafael Marín Mollinedo reported a 20 percent progress in the modernization of the corridor’s existing rail lines, despite suffering delays of up to nine months in 2020, reported MBN.

On Feb. 15, the government announced that in the Port of Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, the 130-meter extension of the dock is 99 percent complete, while its road access is 99.1 percent complete and the renewal of the Istmo de Tehuantepec railroad tracks continues with a 29 percent progress, reported Milenio.

Marín says the corridor’s short-term objective is to be more efficient in a per-vessel basis. Nevertheless, the larger ambitions of the project are primarily focused on attracting companies to permanently reside in the area at one of the many industrial parks and manufacturing hubs that are expected to settle all over the isthmus, reported MBN.

In 2019, the Singaporean government and authorities from Veracruz and Oaxaca signed an agreement that would allow Surbana Jurong to prepare a master plan for CIIT and two new economic development areas in Veracruz and Oaxaca.

Surbana Jurong’s strategic plan includes recommendations on market positioning and development directions to boost employment and industry sectors. The recommendations seek to lay the foundations for economic growth, promote regional investment and improve the quality of life of the people living in the region.

Wong Heang Fine, CEO of Surbana Jurong, explained that the master plan seeks to guide and clarify the organization of the region in regards to infrastructure, transportation, land use planning and industrial potential.

According to CA Posts, Surbana Jurong’s projections show that the corridor will generate around 550,000 jobs and increase the economic potential of the region by 1,600 percent by 2050. Marín explained that by incorporating some structural changes, the region will improve its situation and that Surbana Jurong’s services will allow to create a strong geographical growth plan, considering decentralization and diversification as important industrial development strategies.

“With this, we will cover a historical debt that the country has with the Isthmus of Tehuantepec and with the south-southeast region. For the current administration, reversing this situation is a priority issue of social justice,” Marín said. The Isthmus of Tehuantepec is a region that has been neglected in terms of national development, making this one of the weakest and least developed regions in the country, according to Marín. The government has implemented several social projects, such as the recent alliance between UNDP and ICTT that promotes economic development and the preservation of regional history, culture and traditions in the region, reported MBN.