SUMMARY In the middle of one of its most significant achievements in 2006, approval of the Border Integration Zone (ZIF being the Spanish acronym), the border dynamics between Colombia and Venezuela simultaneously experienced paralysis in the zones implementation and a lasting rift in bi-national relations. By means of interviews with local public and private actors in projects and alliances between chambers of commerce and trade unions in the cities of Cucuta (Colombia) and Urena, San Antonio, and San Cristobal (Venezuela), this study identified a trend toward a model of local governance in the region of Norte de Santander and a model of central and anti-enterprise planning in the state of Tachira. Dynamics of inter-institutional cooperation and cross-border governance in the tourism sector were found.