Three Different Mexicos: application of the SWOT analysis on three Mexican regions

With the decreasing importance of national borders and rise of regions as main actors in economic activity, regional disparities are one of the pressing issues faced by many governments. The objective of this thesis is to look at the case study of trends of Mexican regional disparities. The paper draws from the New Economic Geography, which stresses importance of human and physical capital for economic growth, and Porter's theory of clusters which finds the importance of export for regional development. The paper divides Mexico into three regions: the North; the Centre and the South and uses the SWOT analysis for evaluation of each region. The thesis finds that the North is the region with highest economic performance which is the result of its export-based manufacturing industry. It benefits from its closeness to the US, but it lacks technological research connected to its products, as that takes place in the US. The Centre has been also experiencing growth. Most of its economic activity is located around Mexico City but various clusters have been created in other areas as well. Lastly, the South is the poorest and most diverse region. Its economy is based on oil, tourism and agriculture and it consists of well-performing states as well as of states in viscous cycles of poverty. The paper offers a..