Several policies aimed at developing a digital health care system in Mexico have seen the costs associated with bureaucracy decrease significantly. According to a policy brief published by the OECD in 2018, the simplification of government procedures across all sectors has seen the cost of administrative burdens decrease from 4.3% of GDP in 2012 to 2.7% in 2017. The health care sector stands…
Federal labour law states that it is the employer’s obligation to comply with regulations on health and safety in the workplace, and that the conditions under which risk prevention is guaranteed is laid out in the Federal Occupational Safety and Health Regulation. Additionally, workers’ rights enable employees to develop and grow in a healthy and safe environment. There are 43 official standards…
In 2019 controversy arose over the National Domain Extinction Law, which establishes that a person who owns assets that cannot be tracked or proven to have come from a legitimate origin, or assets that are a product of illicit activities such as organised crime, kidnapping, hydrocarbons and petrochemicals crimes, human trafficking, corruption, vehicle theft and extortion, can be deprived of the rights…
Under the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) the horticulture sector became Mexico’s fastest-growing industry, with fruit and vegetable exports increasing by 650% between 1995 and 2019. Today, it is a world leader in the export of tomatoes, avocados, berries, grapes, peppers and chillies. Since the treaty came into force in 1994 the sector has invested in innovation and technology to improve…
In accordance with the constitution, every six years the newly elected president of Mexico is required to prepare a National Development Plan (Plan Nacional de Desarrollo, PND) covering the length of his or her mandate. The plan must be submitted to Congress for approval in the early months of the presidency, allowing the incoming administration to set out its vision for the country, as well as priorities…
Despite occurring a quarter of a century ago, Mexico’s financial crisis of 1994-95 continues to cast a long shadow over the sector. As consumer and business confidence collapsed, so did bank credit as a share of GDP. Bankers and their regulators adopted and promoted much more conservative lending practices, resulting in many consumers and smaller businesses being locked out of the formal financial…
In an era where businesses and governments worldwide are working to combat the effects of climate change, green bonds have become popular as a capital market instrument. Structured much like any other corporate or sovereign bond, funds raised through a green bond are dedicated exclusively to investment projects with little environmental impact, or to those that seek to prevent or reverse negative environmental…
Reaching lower-income segments of the population is notoriously challenging for insurers. In a country such as Mexico, where almost half of the 129.5m-strong population lives below the poverty line and the insurance culture is still underdeveloped, this is particularly difficult. As a result, Mexico has become a leading developer of micro-insurance plans, which are tailored to customers with limited…
Since the 2013 energy reform, investors have found a range of opportunities in Mexico’s liberalised downstream energy sector. The new regulatory framework opened up former state-owned petrol stations to private operators and, more recently, has offered services companies the chance to be involved in the programme to upgrade the country’s refineries. Mexico has six refineries: Salamanca, Tula,…
In addition to growing the transport network, increasing storage capacity and addressing fuel theft are priorities in the midstream energy segment. To this end, since the 2013 energy reform the government has commissioned work by companies such as Canadian firms TC Energy and ATCO to expand the natural gas network to keep up with rising demand and supply deficits in the south and south-east of the…
