Metropolitan development and geographical deconcentration in Mexico, 1980–2015

Our final contributor examines Mexico’s evolution during the past half century and links competitiveness with demographic change. One of the primary features of Mexican economic development during this period has been population deconcentration and economic decentralization. As is the case with many larger urban centers, Mexico City has seen its periphery grow in relation to the city’s historic center, however in the recent period Meexico City’s in relation to other categories of cities has been greater than during the earlier period. Furthermore, while national population growth between 1980 and 2015 was 70 per cent, the country’s 15 urban agglomerations tripled their population. Within Mexico, the greatest growth was in the Center region, with the North growing the least. Regional growth was clearly linked to the dynamism of the regions’ dominant industries: manufacturing exports in the North, automobiles and electronics in the West, and the slow-growing petroleum sector in the South. One of the striking features of this growth was the lack of effective local or regional planning activities on the part of the levels of government. Sobrino argues that this is a powerful requirement for Mexico and its regions and cities in the coming decades.