CAMERON COUNTY/MATAMOROS

AT THE CROSSROADSASSETS AND CHALLENGES FOR

ACCELERATED REGIONAL&

BINATIONAL DEVELOPMENT

TopicsTopics Cameron County, Texas and Matamoros, Cameron County, Texas and Matamoros,

Tamps. Region.Tamps. Region. Report purposeReport purpose Region challenges and opportunitiesRegion challenges and opportunities Region Community knowledge surveyRegion Community knowledge survey Education and Training, Manufacturing and Education and Training, Manufacturing and

Maquiladoras, Transportation and Logistic Maquiladoras, Transportation and Logistic services, Health Services and Life Sciences, services, Health Services and Life Sciences, Community Networks and Information Community Networks and Information TechnologyTechnology

What is next: How to develop identified What is next: How to develop identified industrial clusters? (Leading, supporting, and industrial clusters? (Leading, supporting, and infrastructure) infrastructure)

Cameron County/ Matamoros Cameron County/ Matamoros RegionRegion

US-Mexico Border regions can evolve from US-Mexico Border regions can evolve from simple border crossing marketing simple border crossing marketing operations such as transportation, storing, operations such as transportation, storing, sorting, packaging and retail selling to sorting, packaging and retail selling to developing of high tech industrial clusters developing of high tech industrial clusters via integration of independent via integration of independent manufacturing and services operations. manufacturing and services operations. This report provides select quantitative and qualitative data on Cameron County,U.S. and Matamoros, Mexico, to assess assets and challenges to help identify such a potential clusters to accelerate regional and binational development.

41% 38%

Regional ChallengesRegional Challenges Matamoros

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Cameron CountyCameron County: Challenges and Assets by Economic Activity: Challenges and Assets by Economic Activity

Fast regional growth in a quickly growing national sector

Slow regional growth in a quickly growing national sector

Fast regional sector growth in a nationally declining orlagging sector.

Slow regional growth in a nationally declining or lagging sector.

Matamoros:Matamoros: Challenges and Assets by Economic ActivityChallenges and Assets by Economic Activity

Fast regional growth in a quickly growing national sector

Fast regional sector growth in a nationally declining or lagging sector.

Slow regional growth in a nationally declining or lagging sector.

Slow regional growth in a quickly growing national sector

Knowledge based survey Knowledge based survey Asses community leaders knowledge

concerning job creation, economic development, and wealth creation in Cameron County and Matamoros in the next five-to-ten years as follows:

The importance of regional industries: Established and emerging

The importance and effectiveness of regional economic development factors

The importance and effectiveness of regional economic development strategies

The importance of each FACTOR for economic development Cameron County Ranking

1. Quality of K-12 education

2. Quality of college & university education

3. Affordable & available water supplies

4. Quality of technical & vocational education

5. Skill of entry-level workforce

6. Utilities 7. Skill of managerial &

professional workers 8. Affordable & Available

Energy 9. Telecommunications

Matamoros Ranking

1. Quality of college & university education

2. Affordable & available energy

3. Quality of K-12 education

4. Affordable & available water supplies

5. Health Services 6. Quality of technical &

vocational education 7. Tax Incentives 8. Skill of entry-level

workforce 9. Industrial Parks

EFFECTIVENESS of each FACTOR in your community as of TODAY.

What is next?What is next?

Having identified and evaluated the Having identified and evaluated the industrial activities convenient for industrial activities convenient for the region, a cluster development the region, a cluster development methodology is next. A deep analysis methodology is next. A deep analysis to determine the regional impact of to determine the regional impact of different alternatives is needed given different alternatives is needed given the limited resources and lack of the limited resources and lack of both political support and community both political support and community collaboration. collaboration.