MEXICO
Government and Economy
Government Type
The Mexican government is currently a federal republic. A federal republic is a federation with a republican form of government. After the Spanish withdrew from Mexico, AgustÃn de Iturbide declared himself emperor of Mexico and Central America on September 27, 1821. Then in 1855, a liberal government under the control of President Ignacio Comonfort arranged a constitutional convention that drafted the progressive constitution of 1857. The Constitution of Mexico was approved on February 5, 1917.
Major Imports and Exports
Exports: (world's rank: 16th)
- Major exports: Manufactured goods, electronics, oil and oil products, aircraft, silver, computers and servers, fruits, meats, consumer electronics, processed foods, vegetables, ships, coffee, LCD screens, electricity, biotechnology, cotton, rolling stock, automotive and aircraft engines, cellular phones, metals, industrial equipment, granite and marble, lithium batteries.
- Top export partners: United States (78.2%), Spain (2.8%), Canada (2.7%), China (1.7%), Germany (1.5%), Colombia (1.3%), Brazil (1.0%), Netherlands (0.8%), Chile (0.6%), Japan (0.5%).
Imports: (world's rank: 15th)
- Major imports: Vehicles and vehicle parts, electric and electronic machinery and equipment, boilers and steam generators, engines and engine parts, copper and copper products.
- Top import partners: United States (48.7%), China (15.9%), Japan (4.5%), Germany (3.6%), South Korea (3.2%), Canada (2.6%), Italy (2.1%), Taiwan (1.8%), Brazil (1.4%), Spain (1.1%).
Major Issues
- Education: Lack of education for most of the population, as only one in every 10 Mexicans completes college education. It is widely known in Mexico that the education minister does not work on improving the education of Mexican children, but to deal with the day-to-day issues of the Teachers Union, which is one of the most corrupt in the country. Nowadays, in terms of reading, mathematics and writing, Mexican students qualify as second-to-last against all OCDE countries (it is just barely ahead of Turkey).
- Security: The ever-scaling violence between drug cartels and police forces, as part of the "Mexican War on Drugs" (2006 - present-day). This conflict has put a severe strain in Mexico's resources, as demands for security have to be counterbalanced against other priority issues, like poverty or education. To date, there have been more than 80,000 dead since the conflict begun.
- Environment: climate change and environmental degradation are a global issue, but Mexico is being hard hit, including more than 300 threatened species and several more already extinct, mostly due to habitat loss. Deforestation, erosion and desertification are also a present danger. Finally, pollution of soil and water sources are considered "contained", but nonetheless are a persistent issue.
Who's the president? What's their political platform? How they affect Mexico's role today?
The president of Mexico is Enrique Pena Nieto. He has been president of Mexico is since 2012. His political platform is to improve education,social classes, to try to stop the drug cartels and improve the economy. He effect Mexico's role today by making more reforms to improve the way of life.