The Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) – known as USMCA in the U.S. and T-MEC in Mexico - is set to go into effect on July 1, 2020, replacing the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). It will create a modernized free-trade system among the three countries.

The implementation of CUSMA during the COVID-19 pandemic year will bring some challenges …but also opportunities… for businesses engaged in North American trade. Are you ready?

Get ahead of the game and join OWIT-Toronto, in partnership with the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service, for this CUSMA webinar to help exporters conduct business in the North American region and plan ahead. Introduction of the topic and background will be presented by one of Canada’s negotiators for NAFTA and our panel will feature two knowledgeable Canadian trade representatives based in the US and Mexico. Their regional perspectives will showcase how the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service – now more than ever - is a valuable, on-the-ground resource to tap into at a time when travel by exporters to the US and Mexico is restricted due to COVID-19.

Why should you participate? You will:

• Find out how CUSMA is an enhanced version of NAFTA.
• Hear insightful, first-hand perspectives of the markets and local economies.
• Learn key opportunities and sectors in the current unsettled times.
• Discover how to navigate the challenges of transition during the pandemic.
• Get advice on how to maintain trading relationships in order to recover faster when the crisis is over.

CUSMA Overview:

Cristina Popovici, Deputy Director Trade Negotiations – North America (TNP)

Ms. Popovici has worked with Global Affairs Canada since 2008. She is currently Deputy Director in the Trade Negotiations-North America Division of the Trade Branch. During her professional career, she has worked on several free trade agreements, including the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, the Comprehensive and Progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership and the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement. Ms. Popovici holds a Master of Arts degree in international trade from the Norman Patterson School of International Affairs.

Panel Speakers:

Susan Harper, Canadian Consul General in Miami, Florida, USA

Prior to moving to Miami, Ms. Harper held two consecutive positions in Global Affairs Canada in Ottawa: Director General and Senior Arctic Official (2013-16) and Director General, Trade Controls and Technical Barriers (2009-13). In 2004, she had been posted to the Embassy of Canada in Washington DC, where she became Minister (Economic) in 2008. She had previously been Ambassador in Montevideo, Uruguay (2001-04), after having held trade positions in Yaoundé, Paris and Buenos Aires.

Frederick Caldwell, Commercial Consul and Senior Trade Commissioner in Monterrey NL, Mexico

Frederick Caldwell graduated from McGill University with a major in Political Science and Latin American Studies. He hold a Master's Degree in International Public Policy from Wilfrid Laurier University.

Currently, he serves as Commercial Consul and Senior Trade Commissioner at the Consulate General of Canada in Monterrey. Previously, Frederick served in the Canada-European Union Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) Secretariat where he was in charge of stakeholder relations, and promotion of the agreement to Canadian businesses. He has also served in the Canadian embassies in Bogotá, Colombia and Lima, Peru, as well as in the Canadian Ministry of Natural Resources and the Canada-Ecuador Chamber of Commerce in Guayaquil, Ecuador.

Moderator

Aylin Lusi, Director, OWIT-Toronto, and VP, Public Affairs, UPS

This is a complimentary webinar. Register here now to reserve your spot. Please submit your questions in advance.

Thanks to our Supporters

Program Development and Management: Alma Farias, Trade Partners

Program Advisor : Susan Baka, Bay Communications & Marketing Inc.

OWIT- Toronto celebrates the 125-year anniversary of the Canadian Trade Commissioner Service