Government Business Relations And Regional Development In Post Reform Mexico

This book explores the political economy of subnational development in Mexico. Like much of Latin America, Mexico underwent market reforms and democratization in the late 20th century. In addition to transforming national institutions, these changes led to sharp political and economic divergence among Mexican states. The author offers a novel explanation for these uneven results, showing how relations between local governments and organized business gave rise to distinct subnational institutions for managing the economy. The argument is developed through a paired comparison of two states in central Mexico, Puebla and Querétaro. This work will be of interest to students of Latin American and Mexican politics, regional development, and government-business relations.

Examines Mexico's regional development policy options for the coming decade.

Examines Mexico's regional development policy options for the coming decade.

Critical veiw of current economic cooperation between government and business in modern Mexico.

Internationally recognized experts from the academic and think-tank communities in the United States, Mexico, and Canada consider the origins of the current crisis in Mexico, and the nature and effectiveness of the Calderón government's response, through the lens of Joel Migdal's concept of "the state in society."

Economic Policy Reform in Mexico.

In Latin America in general, economic liberalization of the 1980s and 1990s has led to an increasing concentration of economic power in the hands of big economic interests. Strategic Alliances and Other Deals argues that in Mexico, the advent of a North American Free Trade Agreement with Canada and the U.S. has accelerated the shift of economic power towards dominant private sector interests. Indeed, Mexico opened up its economy at a greater pace and to a further extent than any country in the region (with the exception of Chile under the dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet, 1973-1989). In this book, Kleinberg shows how the formal mechanism established to bring private-sector demands to the NAFTA negotiating table forged a transparent, closer, more strategic alliance between the state and big business that goes beyond the coalitions and pacts created during the heavily protectionist substitution stage. Business was not only guaranteed a significant role in the free trade negotiations, but also greater influence in economic policy making as well. This has led to a newer, more consistent negotiating style between sectors of business and the state. Pacts made between the state, business, and labor during the economic crisis of 1995 demonstrated the dominance of business over economic policy decisions. The Mexican State has historically depended upon the cooperation of the labor and peasant sectors along with business. The shift in business-state relations poses grave challenges for future stability and democratization in Mexico. It is likely that the growth of political power of the business sector will not cause long-term socioeconomic instability.

Mexico's private sector continues to confront challenges imposed not only by reforms in the country's economic and political systems, but also by demands of the international economic community for transparent and fair business dealings. In this book, scholars and business leaders examine the responses to these challenges, weighing the goals of economic reform against its results, assessing the effect of economic modernization on sectors of the Mexican economy, and evaluating the political, economic, and social prospects for further reforms.