Niagara agencies help prepare for border reopening
Local stakeholders part of group making recommendations to Ottawa and Washington for post-COVID-19 recovery
Agencies from both sides of the Niagara River have come together and crafted recommendations to Ottawa and Washington about reopening the Canada-U.S. border during the post-COVID-19 recovery.
Members of the group, including 15 relevant stakeholders from Niagara, Ontario and Western New York, felt it was important to provide “feet-on-the-ground” insights into border re-opening as policies are being developed, rather than waiting for a plan to be handed down, then react.
The group recently sent a letter with seven recommendations to policy officials at the federal, provincial and state levels.
Hugo Chesshire, director of policy and government relations with Greater Niagara Chamber of Commerce, said the group is made up of various institutions with an interest in cross-border issues.
“We need multi-sector input,” he said.
“These decisions should not be made in a vacuum. They should be made with broad input from a lot of
stakeholders. Collaboration is more important than ever in this crisis.”
On May 8, under the auspices of the Binational Prosperity Initiative, leadership from Brock University, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, and World Trade Center Buffalo Niagara held a workshop to discuss strategies for reopening the Canada-U.S. border.
The goal was to discuss impacts of current border restrictions on industry and design strategies for reopening the border in a responsible manner to ensure the seamless flow of more than $2 billion in daily trade between the two countries.
Attendees included leadership drawn from industry associations, economic development agencies, the public sector, corporations engaged in cross-border commerce, bridge operators, academic and the policy community.
Craig Turner, president of World Trade Center Buffalo Niagara, said often when border policies are crafted at the federal level in Ottawa and Washington, they’re not localized to specific border regions.
He said while it can be difficult to get both sides of the border “on the same page” as Canada and the U.S. are two sovereign nations that “make their own rules,” there are some commonalities, especially along the Buffalo-Niagara border.
“When we look at our regional economy and how intertwined we are, there are sometimes very different things to be talking about than what’s happening at the 30,000-foot level,” said Turner.
Based on discussions at the workshop and conversations with stakeholders who could not attend, the group came forward with seven recommendations.
Rather than a one-size fits all approach, the group recommends Canada and the U.S. consider a cross-border regional approach to reopening the border.
The group wants to see Canada and the U.S. reduce unnecessary regulatory differences related to medical supply and other critical industries.
If buy-Canadian or buyAmerican provisions are incorporated into the next round of stimulus funding, the group recommends Canadian and American legislators incorporate exemptions to each other.
Members said it is important for economic recovery in both countries that the CanadaUnited States-Mexico Agreement/United States-MexicoCanada Agreement enter into force July 1; that Canada and the U.S. invest in further border technology to ensure border crossers are healthy and promote economic recovery.