Public–private partnerships for urban land development in Mexico: a victory for hope versus expectation?

Abstract

Over the past decade, public–private partnerships have become increasingly prominent on the international urban policy agenda. Yet few studies have attempted to measure the performance of partnerships, especially for urban land development and particularly where they bring an informal or customary agent into the formal segment of the market. This paper assesses the record of partnerships in Mexico involving ejido land according to whether they increased the supply of land for housing, improved access to land for low-income households, raised the overall efficiency of the land market and lead to more productive public–private relations. Looking at four partnerships in detail the study found a number of fundamental problems which severely undermined operation and future potential. The paper concludes with some suggestions for how the legislation, administration and financing of partnerships might be improved in future so that ejido land can be delivered legally onto the land market and to the benefit of ejido and low-income groups.