Economic Globalization, Metropolitan Concentration and Urban Policies in Mexico

Abstract

This article analyzes certain aspects of the link between economic development and urbanization in Mexico, as well as the evolution of the urban and regional policies designed to modify population distribution throughout the country. To clarify the relationship between both process of social change, the study is divided into three stages: i) the period between 1960 and 1980, characterized by high economic growth, it) the decade from 1980 to 1990, associated with structural economic crisis, and in) the five-year period from 1990 to 1995, linked to relative recovery and a new crisis. The article seeks to determine whether the evolution of the city system in Mexico, together with the spatial policies implemented, have undergone significant modifications during each period, particularly the last, which saw the consolidation of a neo-liberal model of indiscriminate trade liberalization vis-à-vis the international market.