NAFTA's promise and reality: lessons from Mexico for the Hemisphere

The report has two objectives: to determine how quality of life in Mexico has been affected by trade liberalisation in North America. It focuses on the microlevel of people and their communities, on changes in household income, paychecks, rural employment and agricultural production. It explores the implications of these for migration and environmental quality and asks about the role of NAFTA in promoting these changes to offer insights for other countries, especially in Latin America, that wish to strengthen their economic ties within the region.The report's conclusions include:while jobs in manufacturing have increased, there is still a growing problem of unemployment in Mexicosince joining NAFTA Mexico has seen an increase in the number of poor migrants to the USANAFTA has not created the necessary conditions for public and private sectors to respond to the economic, social and envronmental shocks of trading with the USA and Canada.The report's recommendations include:there is a need for longer, more gradual tariff reduction schedules fo agricultural products from rich countries to mitigate the problems of dumpingdeveloping countries should distribute gains from trade more equitablytrade agreements should promote the development of domestic suppliers.Other chapters in this document include:"Jobs, wages and household income", by S. Polaski "Shifting expectations of free trade and migration", by D. Papademetriou"The greenest trade agreement ever? Measuring the environmental impacts of agricultural liberalisation", by S. Vaughan.Notes:For access to a Spanish translation of these documents, or to download the other chapters, see Further Information.