Redalyc. Metropolitan Urbanization in Mexico: Regulations and Socieconomic Characteristics
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Scientific Information System Network of Scientific Journals from Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain and Portugal Gustavo Garza Metropolitan urbanization in Mexico: regulations and socieconomic characteristics Papeles de Población, vol. 13, núm. 52, abril-junio, 2007, pp. 77-108, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México México Available in: http://www.redalyc.org/articulo.oa?id=11205204 Papeles de Población, ISSN (Printed Version): 1405-7425 [email protected] Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México México How to cite Complete issue More information about this article Journal's homepage www.redalyc.org Non-Profit Academic Project, developed under the Open Acces Initiative Papeles de POBLACIÓN No. 52 CIEAP/UAEM Metropolitan urbanization in Mexico: regulations and socieconomic characteristics Gustavo Garza El Colegio de México Resumen Abstract El propósito del artículo es, en primer lugar, Metropolitan urbanization in Mexico: analizar la evolución del sistema urbano de regulations and socieconomic characteristics México de 1980 a 2005, para evidenciar la creciente concentración de población en las The objectives of this paper are, in the first metrópolis de más de 500 mil habitantes. En place, to analyze the evolution of the urban segundo lugar, se examina la productividad de system in Mexico from 1980 to 2005, in order las 56 metrópolis existentes, así como su to demonstrate the increasing concentration of pobreza endémica, déficit habitacional, population in the metropolises with more than subempleo estructural e índice de desarrollo five hundred thousand inhabitants; secondly, humano metropolitano, con el fin de determinar the productivity of the fifty-six existing la gravedad de su problemática económico- metropolises as well as their endemic poverty, social. Finalmente, se reflexiona sobre las housing deficit, structural underemployment cuestiones de gobernabilidad y administración and their indexes of metropolitan human de las ciudades, considerando que su buen development are examined, all of this with the desempeño es indispensable para el correcto aim of determining the seriousness of their funcionamiento de las empresas privadas y, por socio-economic problematic. Finally, some ende, para que el país sea internacionalmente reflections on the issues of governance and competitivo. administration of the cities are presented, considering that their good performance is Palabras clave: urbanización, sistema urbano, indispensable for the correct operation of the concentración demográfica, metrópolis, private companies and, therefore, for the México. country’s international competitiveness. Key words: urbanization, urban system, demographical concentration, metropolises, Mexico. etropolises in Mexico are places where the concentration of the primary and secondary socioeconomic activities takes place. In them, Mwe find a more diversified labor, the big universities and centers of investigation that produce the main technological innovations, the governmental apparatus and the groups of power. In other to make possible the metropolitan concentration, multimillionaire investments in great building works of infrastructure, equipment and efficient public services are required.This, in conjunction with the 66 Metropolitan urbanization in Mexico:... /G. Garza private capital and the labor, constitute the colossal factors of production whose rhythm of accumulation, competitiveness and negotiation define the national economic development. The objective of this work is triple: i) to analyze the evolution of the urban system in Mexico from 1980 to 2005, emphasizing the growing importance of its most important metropolises; ii) to examine some socioeconomic variables in the 56 metropolitan zones of the country in 2000; this in order to determine the seriousness of its social problematic. iii) to reflect on governability and cities’ management. With it, we try to contribute to the governmental goal of establishing the fundamental premises in order to design a new juridical-normative superstructure that overcomes the deficiencies of the old General Law of Human Settlements (Ley General de Asentamientos Humanos) of 1976 even after its major reformation in May 1993. This constitutes a necessary condition, even if it is not enough, to help the Mexican cities to become internationally competitive. From the beginning we establish that the evolution of the national urban system to unprecedented structuring of the cities into megalopolitan conglomerates, as well as the great regions of polycentric type, constitute new spheres of concentration in the economic activities and the population whose nature must be recognized in urbanistic right. The metropolitan character of the urbanization, 1980- 2005 The urban system evolution of Mexico in the XX century is divided into three periods: i) moderate-slow, 1900-1940; ii) accelerated-medium, 1940-1980; iii) slow-accelerated, 1980-2005.1 In the 80’s the transit from a preeminent monocentric system to one polycentric is started, for in 1980 the eight biggest cities of more than 500 thousand inhabitants had the 56% per cent of the total urban population. Despite this, the central pole of this new concentration continued being Mexico City that in 1980 represented a primacy index of two cities of 5.7, which is high enough to continue cataloging the Mexican urban hierarchy as preeminent.2 Its character 1 These periods were determined considering the rate of urbanization and the absolute increase of the urban population (Garza, 2005). This work is a revised, updated and corrected version of Garza, 2006. 2 The index of primacy of two cities is calculated dividing the population of the largest city by that of the second (Mexico City with 13 million inhabitants in 1980 and Guadalajara with 2.3). 67 April/June 2007 Papeles de POBLACIÓN No. 52 CIEAP/UAEM of central place of first order in the urban system will be strengthened at the beginning of its process of megalopolitan expansion. The economic structure and the urban hierarchy present an organic bond, i.e. they are two inseparable elements of the same body. Although they don’t constitute a relationship of causality, they present spatial-temporal imbalances that need to be explained analytically in order to understand its nature and establish political and judicial normativities. In the case of Mexico, one starts by considering that the two last decades of the XX century present different characteristics: In the 80’s a serious economic crisis occurs and in the 90’s a neoliberal policy is applied producing a relative and unstable economic recovery whose final results are not very hopeful. The spatial effects of the Mexican incorporation in a competitive manner in the world economy and in the international market will be recognized only in the long term, but it is of great interest to compare the urban evolution between both decades and identify its differences. Urban growth in the lost decade From 1982 to 1988 the GDP of Mexico is reduced in -0.01 percent and the 80’s are labeled as “the lost decade”. As in these years the neoliberal policies start, it is necessary not to confuse the urban changes in the decade as attributable to these policies and to the ones produced by the crisis itself. The prolonged recession of the 80’s did not have a profound impact in the demographic dynamics of the country. Between 1980 and 1990, the total population and the urban increased in 14.4 and 14.8 millions, the most elevated absolute growth in the whole XX century (the second increases more due to the absolute reduction of 400 thousand rural inhabitants). Supposing that the population of the rural and the urban areas grow at two percent as the total population did, in the 80’s we would have a rural-urban migration of approximately 6.8 million.3 The urbanization degree (Ud) i.e., the percentage of urban population with regard to the total increases from 55 to 63 percent between 1980 and 1990, consolidating the Mexican urban hegemony. The impact of the crisis was not reflected in the general dynamics of the urban development, it was reflected in the deterioration of the living conditions of the population and in the increment of the informal employment. 3 30.1 million rural inhabitants should grow in 6.4 million, plus 400 thousand that were reduced, we have then 6.8 million estimated in the internal migration (minus the balance of international migration, in both cases, urban and rural). 68 Metropolitan urbanization in Mexico:... /G. Garza There are 81 cities that grow more than the rate of 3.5 percent in the urban population between 1980 and 1990. The pattern of spatial distribution is maintained in the urban population, but the population of Mexico City increases only 1.6 percent, a very inferior figure compared to the urban average and its previous rates. Nevertheless, this signifies an absolute increment in the population of 2.2 million, whose requirements in terms of employment, housing services and infrastructure must be satisfied.4 In a historical process of polynuclear concentration one observes, in first place, the accelerated growth of the neighboring cities to Mexico City specialized in manufacturing: Puebla (4.1 percent), Querétaro (10.5 percent), Pachuca (6.6 percent), Tlaxcala (6.6 percent) and 8.7 percent in San Juan del Río (Garza, 2003: 170-199). Toluca, with a rate of 3.4 percent, which is slightly inferior to the average, grows in 230 thousand inhabitants and its metropolitan expansion in the 80’s is overlapped with the metropolitan zone of Mexico City,