Government-Business Relations and Regional Development in Post-Reform Mexico

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xv

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2. Introduction

   • Theodore Kahn

   Pages 1-25

3. Governing Subnational Economies

   • Theodore Kahn

   Pages 27-60

4. Origins and Consequences of Divergent Private Sector Organization in Puebla and Querétaro

   • Theodore Kahn

   Pages 61-88

5. Building Institutions for Cooperation in Querétaro, 1979–1991

   • Theodore Kahn

   Pages 89-116

6. Partisan Rivalry Between Government and Business in Puebla, 1981–1993

   • Theodore Kahn

   Pages 117-146

7. Consolidation of a Developmental Alliance in Querétaro, 1991–1997

   • Theodore Kahn

   Pages 147-171

8. Authoritarian Political Economy and Global Integration in Puebla, 1993–1999

   • Theodore Kahn

   Pages 173-199

9. Querétaro’s Rising Star in the Global Economy, 1997–2009

   • Theodore Kahn

   Pages 201-225

10. Institutional Erosion and Economic Stagnation in Puebla, 1999–2011

    • Theodore Kahn

    Pages 227-256

11. Conclusion

    • Theodore Kahn

    Pages 257-277

12. Back Matter

    Pages 279-290

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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.

• Latin America
• Latin American Political Economy
• development
• Mexico
• industrialization
• sub-national governments
• latin american politics

“For much of the past four decades, economic growth in Mexico has been disappointing, even after controlling macroeconomic instability in the 1980s and early 1990s, and after introducing a host of reforms in later years. Within Mexico, however, one finds intriguing contrasts, with some states that have been able to set off on a dynamic economic course. Theodore Kahn takes advantage of the variation in economic performance across Mexican states to shed new light on the reasons behind the country’s low growth. In this book, the author discusses how the dynamics of government-business relations, based on a careful comparative analysis of two states, shape economic outcomes. He finds that institutional arrangements that facilitate public-private collaboration and guarantee policy continuity across political cycles is a key element of success. While Kahn’s focus is on local economic performance, the lessons he derives have a wider reach and offer a key lesson for Mexico at large and, indeed, for developing countries more broadly.” (Ernesto López-Córdova, Practice Manager for Industry Solutions, the World Bank Group, and former Head of the Economic Productivity Unit, Mexico’s Ministry of Finance, Mexico)

• School of Advanced International Studies, Johns Hopkins University, Washington, DC, USA

  Theodore Kahn

Theodore Kahn is Visiting Scholar in the Latin American Studies Program at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies, USA.

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