3 Another example is low credit penetration, which is frequently connected to poor contract enforcement, and the size of informality itself. There is wide consensus that Mexico needs structural reforms to enhance productivity growth. In order for any initiative to be promising in terms of its envisioned results, it is essential to better understand the structural impediments to the expansion of productivity.
In my opinion, the first challenge lies in measurement. Many good studies on Mexico’s discouraging long-term economic performance fail to subject their hypotheses to statistical verification. In some cases, arguments for one-off effects on productivity are confused with those more suitable for explaining dynamic consequences.