|| Embassy of Mexico to Singapore

|| Embassy of Mexico to Singapore - Mexico

The Good News about Mexico.

Jose Angel Gurria elected new Head of the Organization for Economic Cooperation Development / OECD (Grupo Reforma, Nov. 25). Former Mexican Minister for Foreign Affairs, Jose Angel Gurria, was elected new Secretary-General of the Organization for Economic Cooperation Development (OECD). Mr. Gurria, 55, will take on his new position on June 1, 2006, for a period of five years, according to a OECD's spokesman. He also served as Minister for Finance under President Ernesto Zedillo's term in office (1994-2000) during which his assistance and experience was crucial to help stabilize the Mexican economy following the 1994-1995 peso crisis. more...

Mexican writer Sergio Pitol was awarded de Cervantes Prize (EFE, El Universal Online, Dec. 1). Mexican diplomat and writer Sergio Pitol Demeneghi was awarded the Cervantes Prize for Literature 2005, which is considered the highest literary honor in the Spanish speaking world. Mr. Pitol, 72, served in the Mexican Foreign Service in such places as Warsaw, Budapest, Paris and Prague; as a writer, he is the author of a large number of literary works, and is regarded as one of the most important Latin American authors. The Cervantes Prize is comparable in its meaning with the literature Nobel Prize, and is endowed with 90.000 euros. Mr. Pitol will travel to the city of Alcala de Henares, where he will receive the Prize from the hands of H.M. the King of Spain, on April 23, 2006. Learn more...

The Mexican currency in its best performance for the last 28 months (El Financiero, Nov. 29). The Mexican peso gained 5.05 cents and established its parity to the US dollar at 10.5555, making it its best since July 2003. With this renovated value, the Mexican currency has gained 5.34 percentage points this year, equivalent to a total of 59.55 cents.

Bernardo Sepulveda was elected to the International Court of Justice (El Universal Online / Nov. 8). For the first time since 1973, Mexico occupies once again a position in the world's highest legal authority. After four rounds of voting in the UN's General Assembly and six rounds in the Security Council, former Mexican Minister for Foreign Affairs Bernardo Sepulveda Amor was elected to a 9-year term as Judge of the International Court of Justice, along with four other magistrates from Morocco, New Zeland, Russia and the United States. He will assume his new position on February 6, 2006. more... more...

Mexico is now world's seventh largest tourism destination. Mexico has a privileged geographical location and some of the greatest biodiversity in the world, meaning that it has natural scenery and resources for promoting all kinds of recreational activities and satisfying the most demanding tourists. It is estimated that by December, tourism will have attracted $12 billion USD and that over 24 million foreign visitors will have visited at least one tourist resort in the country.

UNAM, among the World’s 100 Best Universities (El Universal Online / Nov. 2). This year, the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) was classified as one of the finest institutions in the world, rising from 195th place in 2004 to 95th. For the English newspaper The Times, UNAM is not only among the 100 best universities in the world, but also in Latin America and Spain, ranking higher than the University of Madrid, in 183rd place and Sao Paulo, in 196th. In The Times’ most recent annual classification, UNAM also gained recognition in the areas of Arts and Humanities and Science.