LOUISIANA: GATEWAY FOR THE GLOBAL MARKETPLACE

As Governor-elect Jindal prepares to assume office, we should remind ourselves that the international opportunities for Louisiana are simply tremendous as the United States becomes further integrated into the ever-expanding global economy.

Louisiana must compete successfully in that global environment, and not just against Texas, Mississippi, and Alabama. The state should position itself to become "The Gateway for the Global Marketplace" for both outbound and inbound cargos and the related added value and jobs that can be generated through new distribution facilities, industry, technology, and logistical services. The state already has significant assets that work to its advantage internationally, including:

• A Rich History: Louisiana was settled by the French, Spanish and other nationalities starting over 300 years ago for the purpose of world trade, and that objective is every bit as important today as it was then. This is a very multinational, multicultural, and multilingual state, and we should fully exploit that intrinsic competitive advantage.
   
  
• An Entrepot: "Entrepot" is an underused but relevant word defined in the dictionary as "a commercial center whose goods are received for distribution, transshipment, or repackaging." Louisiana of course already meets that criteria, but can do even better in the future as an international transportation hub and distribution center for primary, intermediate and finished products going to and from Mid-America due to the state's strategic geographic location and the Gulf of Mexico, the Mississippi River, the state's vast inland waterways network, the Gulf Intracoastal Waterway, six Class I railroads, the Interstate highway system, and its airports.
   
  
• The Mega-Port: Few of our own residents -- let alone outsiders -- are aware that the lower Mississippi River in Louisiana has the largest port complex in the world in total waterborne commerce (five deepwater ports from Baton Rouge to the Gulf), a powerful asset that needs to be jointly marketed more aggressively worldwide. One in seven jobs in Louisiana is estimated to be maritime-dependent, which in turn generates about 13 percent of the state's gross domestic product. The ports along the river are doing quite well as transit ports but they can be much more than that, as in other states. They have the potential to add more processing, value, and jobs to inbound and outbound cargos (such as has been done with coffee) for steel, rubber, petrochemical, agricultural, forestry, seafood, and other products. But greatly increased, coordinated financial support from State government and the Legislature to upgrade the port facilities is absolutely essential to accomplish that objective, as happens in other maritime states. Investing in Louisiana's transportation infrastructure is an assured statewide economic multiplier many times over.
   
  
• The Hemispheric Advantage: The Mississippi River is truly "The Avenue of the Americas," a magnificent water highway leading to and from the rest of the world, and especially to nearby Latin America. In 2006 a record total of $23.5 billion of Louisiana-originating products and bulk commodities from other states (especially agricultural exports) were shipped worldwide from our deepwater ports -- after ag products came chemicals, petroleum and coal, processed food, and transportation equipment. Nearly one-fourth of those exports last year went to Latin America. Moreover, for the first nine months of 2007 Mexico was the #1 market for Louisiana exports, overtaking Japan, and Canada ranked third, with both results reflecting the positive trade impact that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) has had on Louisiana. In addition, the U.S.-Central American Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA) passed in 2006, the recently approved U.S.-Peru FTA, the pending FTAs with Colombia and Panama, the widening of the Panama Canal, and the eventual opening of the Cuba market to U.S. goods all offer timely opportunities for Louisiana and its strong hemispheric transportation links to the U.S. heartland.
   
  
• Strategic Action: Much more can be said on how the forces of globalization can be used to Louisiana's further advantage, given the state's inherent competitive strengths and attributes. As Governor, Bobby Jindal should seize the initiative with business, government, and the academic community to develop creative strategies and an international master plan that will build on those assets that Louisiana can leverage to the world.
   

Eugene Schreiber
December 18, 2007