Decentralization of the Population in the Central Region of Mexico

Abstract

A variety of terms, including metropolitan expansion, formation of a megalopolis, consolidation of the central urban system, process of suburbanization and extended concentration are used to refer to the territorial redistribution of the population undergone by the central region of Mexico over the past twenty-five years; "deconcentration" is the term I prefer to use. There has been more political recognition than conceptual clarity as regards what is actually happening in this spatial sphere; this article aims to achieve the latter. To this end, I attempt to specify the dimensions achieved by this phenomenon to date from the point of view of the population, by exploring the general demographic trajectory of this zone and the particular trends of each state. The article al- so focuses on the general transformations on the municipal scale in order to be able to identify the places with pull and push factors more accurately. The article ends with a brief overview of the new regional migration, highlighting the diversity of flows and the variety of their composition.