Mexico is a Country that is On the Move and Transforming

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• Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto listed ten points summarizing the current situation in Mexico   Davos, Switzerland, January 23, 2014 President Enrique Peña Nieto said today that, "Mexico is a country that is moving and being transformed into democracy. We are an increasingly democratic country, and a climate of political maturity (and) democracy has made it possible to move and transform Mexico." During his delivery of the keynote address on, "Transforming Mexico: Society, Politics and Economy," at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, the president stressed that, "We are ready and prepared to tackle the challenges of the 21st century, and above all, to enable Mexico to take off and achieve economic development to create jobs and social order to extend development opportunities throughout national territory, and ensure better conditions for all Mexicans." He said that 2013 was the first year of this administration, in which "we clearly defined a working agenda that involved transformation and structural change for our country." He said that his government undertook "an agenda of transformation and structural changes," and acknowledged that "this has been possible in a climate of political pluralism and political diversity in which there is no political party that has hegemony in Congress although this environment has taken an important step to show that political maturity and civility can exist in democracy." He noted that the government managed to establish a consensus on what needed to be changed and transformed, "Respecting everyone's view but looking for meeting spaces between them to promote structural changes." "That resulted in what has been called the Pact for Mexico, which is the expressed will of the political forces and the government to undertake the change and transformation of our country, and stop postponing the major changes required by our institutional framework," he added. He stressed that the reforms that have taken place in Mexico have been, "Constitutional, which obviously leads to an entire secondary legislation." "Energy Reform means that we will now have a regulatory body for energy, and that we will do what is required to implement the first projects with the participation of the private sector, which will surely be achieved by the end of this year," he explained. Moreover, he continued, "It will change the corporate regime of the parastate company PEMEX to make it more productive and more competitive, and obviously able to compete and to develop its mandate and capacity more efficiently." During the keynote address, moderated by WEF President and Founder Klaus Schwab, attended by business and political leaders from various countries, President Peña Nieto listed ten points summarizing the current situation in Mexico, stressing that, "Mexico is a country committed to the rule of law, creating conditions for the security and legal certainty of those living in our country and for those who regard Mexico as an ideal, optimal destination for making their investments prosper." He added that Mexico is a democratic country, which has been consolidating its democracy. Very few countries can say that over the past 80 years they have had a new president every six years and an orderly, peaceful transition to democracy. "In Mexico we can boast that we are a country with democratic institutions and a diverse, pluralistic democratic society, which has allowed us to have this period of political stability for 80 years," he said. Third: Mexico is the second largest economy in Latin America and the fourteenth largest in the world, and we have been building a platform to take off and grow economically in the coming years. Fourth: Today Mexico is a country with an enormous macroeconomic stability and sound public finances. "Mexico's debt level, which is 38.7 percent of the Gross Domestic Product, is less than that of other more developed countries. It has an independent monetary policy, led by the Central Bank of our country, with full autonomy, and we also have a robust financial system, with capitalization levels in the order of 16.1 percent, which certainly is above the average for OECD and G20 countries," he said. Fifth: We are a country that is open to the world and a promoter of free trade. "We are one of the most open economies in the world and we participate in various free trade agreements that give us access to a market of over 1.1 billion consumers," he said. Sixth: Mexico is a predominantly young country, and therefore it has the opportunity to have a production plant and economic growth in the coming years. The average age of our population is 27 years, while that of other countries is considerably higher than this average age and over 40 or 45. The president pointed out that Mexico is a country that also trained young people to enter the labor market year after year. "100,000 young people, 100,000 engineering students graduate from our universities and technological institutes every year," he said. Seventh: Mexico has been consolidated as a leader in high-tech advanced manufacturing, and in the automotive industry, the electronic industry and the aerospace industry, where we have undoubtedly advanced and achieved a notable difference in relation to other countries in terms of our capabilities. Eighth: Mexico is a strategic point for global production and trade, and a gateway to both North America and Latin America. Ninth: We have a vast territory; in fact, we are the 14th largest country in the world. Tenth: Mexico is a country undergoing transformation. With this keynote address, President Peña Nieto began his activities in the WEF. He also attended a bilateral meeting with Didier Burkhalter, President of the Swiss Confederation, and participated in a session entitled Business Interaction Group on Mexico, attended by senior leaders of global companies. ---------- Press release, Presidency of the Republic, Jan. 23, 2014; Presidency of the Republic translation.