Overview of the Northeast Region’s Success
The Northeast Region, comprising Coahuila, Nuevo León, San Luis Potosí, and Tamaulipas, has emerged as the most competitive region in Mexico according to the Institute for Competitiveness of Mexico (IMCO)‘s Regional Competitiveness Index (ICR) 2026.
Collaborative Ecosystem
Valeria Moy, the director of IMCO, explains that the region’s success stems from its integrated ecosystem rather than interstate competition. She notes, “The states don’t compete; they work together due to their geographical locations and the proximity of their productive centers.”
Key Index Highlights
- Overall Competitiveness: The Northeast Region scored 62.33 out of 100, placing it in the ‘High Competitiveness’ category.
- Talent Retention: The region leads nationally in the Talent Retention sub-index with ‘Very High Competitiveness,’ thanks to attractive labor conditions, including high salaries.
- Investment Attraction: With ‘High Competitiveness,’ the region is also the leader in attracting new capital and expanding or opening businesses, owing to its industrial prowess and favorable economic structure for exports and GDP per capita.
- Talent Attraction: The region ranks first with ‘High Competitiveness’ in attracting talent due to labor market conditions, educational access, and housing.
- Investment Retention: The region ranks second with ‘Medium-Low Competitiveness,’ as no region achieves ‘High Competitiveness’ due to security concerns for businesses and energy issues.
Neighbor Effect
The index reveals how a state’s performance directly impacts its neighbors, known as the ‘Neighbor Effect.’ For instance, Nuevo León’s rapidly increasing housing costs create a bottleneck that limits the Northeast Region’s capacity to absorb more human capital, despite its economic dynamism.
“When we consider state borders, it’s automatic to think of them individually. I invite you to think regionally to visualize the ‘internal border cost,’ or the inefficiencies and barriers that arise when federal entities act independently, despite their interconnected economies, labor markets, and logistical chains,” Moy explains.
Historical Disadvantage
The Isthmus region, encompassing Guerrero, Oaxaca, Puebla, Tlaxcala, and Veracruz, lags behind nationally with ‘Low Competitiveness,’ attributed to historical disadvantages in logistical and energy infrastructure, high informality, and low productivity. Óscar Campo, IMCO’s Development Economics Director, asserts that “a single state cannot address this regional disadvantage.”
Consequently, projects like the Interoceanic Corridor or Yucatan Peninsula integration will only succeed with a regional cooperation approach rather than a state-centric one, as Campo adds, “A single state is unlikely to be successful on its own.”
Proposed Roadmap for Integration
Given this scenario, IMCO proposes a roadmap centered on integration. For state governments, it suggests aligning agendas and establishing formal cooperation mechanisms, citing examples like the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey in the US or educational coordination among German states.
The private sector is urged to design operational strategies and regional supply chains. IMCO emphasizes that implementing the Mexico Plan should occur with continuity and a regional perspective, not just a state-focused approach. Collaboration with the private sector for critical regional infrastructure development is crucial.
