Resumo

GONZALEZ ESTRADA, Adrián  e  ALFERES VARELA, Mario. Competitiveness and comparative advantages in maize production of Mexico. Rev. Mex. Cienc. Agríc [online]. 2010, vol.1, n.3, pp.381-396. ISSN 2007-0934.

The economic depression of 2008 highlighted the controversies on commercial liberalization, strengthening the idea that the agricultural sector is disastrous and that maize is the most troublesome crop, due to the removal of protectionist quotas and tariffs. This is why an evaluation of national maize production is required, 22 years after the commercial deregulation in 1986 with the inclusion of Mexico in the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), 15 years after the signing of North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and after the elimination of quotas and tariffs on the imports of that grain. The aim of this research is to show how competitiveness and the comparative advantages of maize production in Mexico have evolved. The methodology hereby used is based on the policy analysis matrix with a few modifications, applied to the statistical information of 2007. The conclusion is that 85% of maize production in Mexico has private competitiveness and only 43.2% of the total production has comparative advantages. Since 1990 in Mexico, both private competitiveness and comparative advantages for maize production have grown, and they could continue to grow if a comprehensive and efficient agricultural policy were implemented, focused on the sustainable intensification of agriculture and the growth of partial and total factor productivity mostly throughout research and development activities.

Palavras-chave : comparative advantages; productivity; sustainable intensification; trade liberalization.

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