Everardo Chiapa Aguillón, PhD

E-mail: 

everardo.chiapa@gmail.com 

echiapa@tec.mx

This chapter analyzes appointment mechanisms in local participation channels in Mexico, examining their relationship with levels of social disadvantage. To do so, it draws on data from the National Census of Municipal Government and Territorial Demarcations of Mexico City and the Social Disadvantage Index. Using these sources, I explore how the procedures for accessing participatory channels (open, by election, by selection, or by invitation) vary depending on the socioeconomic conditions of the municipalities. The results of nonparametric tests reveal that municipalities with lower levels of social disadvantage tend to adopt more selective appointment mechanisms. In contrast, those with higher levels of disadvantage tend to favor more open and consultative processes. These findings suggest that socioeconomic context affects both the composition and legitimacy of participatory bodies, at times constraining citizen influence in local decision-making. The study underscores the importance of understanding how these dynamics operate when designing strategies aimed at balancing representation and strengthening local governance.

Mobility patterns and the use of public transport in metropolitan areas have become key elements in the debate on urban development in Mexico. Factors such as population growth and the expansion of cities highlight its relevance in the government agenda and the local economy. This article explores the mobility preferences of higher education students in the metropolitan area of Pachuca, Mexico, considering the inconsistencies in consumer behavior in markets with multiple attributes, such as transportation. To this end, a qualitative approach based on focus groups was adopted, which allowed the relationship between stated and revealed preferences to be analyzed. The results offer an overview of the dynamics of mobility in this sector. 

Los patrones de movilidad y el uso del transporte público en las zonas metropolitanas se han convertido en elementos clave en el debate sobre el desarrollo urbano en México. Factores como el crecimiento poblacional y la expansión de las ciudades resaltan su relevancia en la agenda gubernamental y la economía local. Este artículo explora las preferencias de movilidad de los estudiantes de educación superior en la zona metropolitana de Pachuca, México, considerando las inconsistencias en el comportamiento del consumidor en mercados con múltiples atributos, como el transporte. Para ello, se adoptó un enfoque cualitativo basado en grupos focales, que permitió analizar la relación entre las preferencias declaradas y reveladas. Los resultados ofrecen un panorama de la dinámica de la movilidad en este sector. 

This chapter examines the participatory disposition in Mexican municipalities, focusing on the channels of citizen participation enabled by local governments as a mechanism of participatory democracy and local governance. Utilizing data from the 2021 National Census of Municipal Governments and Territorial Demarcations of Mexico City (CNGMD) by INEGI, the study analyzes the configuration of participatory channels based on five key aspects: type of channel, mode of interaction, temporality, level of impact, and participant access process. The analysis reveals significant variations in the number and nature of participatory channels across different types of municipalities, with metropolitan municipalities exhibiting a higher number of channels compared to rural and marginalized ones. The study also finds a correlation between lower social marginalization and a higher prevalence of participatory channels, particularly in urban settings. Predominantly, participation is characterized by in-person, open-access, and consultative processes, with limited instances of deeper engagement such as co-management or oversight. The findings underscore the need for more inclusive and diverse participatory models to enhance democratic governance, highlighting the influence of municipal characteristics and socioeconomic factors on local participatory dynamics. 

Embora o México tenha enfrentado desafios para a continuidade da operação dos canais de participação nos níveis nacional e subnacional (estados e municípios), principalmente devido à pandemia da COVID-19, os governos têm uma responsabilidade desafiadora de sistematizar as informações provenientes desses canais. O presente trabalho tem como objetivo conhecer o panorama atual da participação nos níveis nacional e subnacional, aproveitando as estatísticas coletadas nos censos governamentais do Instituto Nacional de Estatística e Geografia (INEGI), o Cadastro Federal de Organizações da Sociedade Civil (RFOSC), entre outros. Em segundo lugar, o trabalho discute a viabilidade na implementação, a partir da esfera pública, de ferramentas que permitam o monitoramento tempestivo do funcionamento da prestação participativa no país. Ou seja, não só ter dados periódicos e agregados sobre a participação, mas uma atualização que permita uma avaliação constante da participação. Até agora, não há nenhum esforço que dê conta de ambos os objetivos. Por isso é importante partir de estudos como este que abrem caminho para análises mais aprofundadas da participação na região. 

The three metropolitan areas of the state of Hidalgo maintain a strong relationship with the Mexico Valley Metropolitan Area and, in the face of accelerated population growth (and consequently in the demand for services), it is essential to elaborate development strategies, not only at state or municipal level but also at regional and metropolitan levels. This paper aims to identify patterns in the attraction potential of metropolitan municipalities in relation to each other based on their population evolution. For this study, gravity models were used from a territorial approach, combining information on the population of the municipalities that make up the metropolitan areas and on the distances between each of them and the rest. It is worth noting that, given the distances and population volumes, it is no longer the central municipalities of the metropolitan areas that have the greatest potential for attracting population and consequently development, but some of the outer municipalities.

The ability to travel in and out of the state of Hidalgo, Mexico, posed a dilemma for its inhabitants in the face of the health crisis caused by COVID-19. The pandemic led the state government to take drastic actions on vehicular mobility,  trying to inhibit people’s movements and,  thus,  avoid an increase in contagions.  However,  since the implementation of the measure known as  Hoy no circula  (No-Driving  Day)  in the state,  an upturn in the mobility of people happened. In a descriptive statistical analysis, using Google’s COVID-19 Community Mobility Reports database, we compared the reduction in mobility in Hidalgo with other states. The relative failure of Hoy no circula is explained from a groupthink approach that seeks to understand the decisions of the state executive, the reciprocal acceptance of its cabinet and the support of its bureaucratic base. Our approach, supported by blame avoidance theory, makes it possible to study the adverse consequences of the government’s decision as the result of groupthink which, in order to avoid the confrontation of ideas and discussion or contradiction in organizations, leads to suboptimal outcomes.

La movilidad sostenible genera crecimiento social y económico, reduce la pobreza y mejora la calidad de vida. Aunque la movilidad o el transporte no son uno de los Objetivos del Desarrollo Sostenible, condicionan el avance de muchos de ellos. Los sistemas de transporte son una variable estratégica para avanzar en la agenda global de desarrollo, sobre todo en las ciudades, donde vive cada vez más gente. La pandemia se COVID-19 que inició en 2020 ha hecho aun más complicado este desafío.

América Latina es la segunda región del mundo con mayor número de población urbana y sufre graves problemas de movilidad. En México, la movilidad sostenible es una política pública que se incorporó a la agenda federal hasta la segunda década de este siglo, Esto significó que los distintos ámbitos de gobierno tuvieron que enfrentar el impacto que la movilidad trajo a sus territorios sin el marco jurídico, las herramientas de gestión ni la coordinación adecuadas.

Aunque ha habido ciertos avances, los retos que enfrenta México en esta materia son apremiantes. Este libro del Instituto de Administración Pública del Estado de México (IAPEM) aspira a aportar elementos para la reflexión y discusión de alternativas de política pública que contribuyan a mejorar esta importante arena del quehacer gubernamental.

Public-private partnerships (PPP) as suppliers for public services have been increasingly used as an instrument for improving public policy, mostly when it comes to reducing costs and improving public transport. The purpose of this paper is to carry out a comparative analysis between two metropolitan areas in Mexico and to identify the main causes that explain the performance and difficulties of a hybrid supplying model. The transport sector was chosen not only for its great importance in urban areas but also due to its representativeness to highlight the specificities of PPPs. The Mexican experience has shown that infrastructure projects tend to underestimate their costs and to overestimate their demand, even with supposed formal validation processes. In this sense, even though PPPs have been generally promoted by international organizations, there is a prevailing need to explore the implications and challenges that emerge from this kind of governance tools. Process tracing was conducted as a methodological technique within a comparative approach using qualitative information.