Sistema Regional de Información
en línea para Revistas Científicas de América Latina,
el Caribe, España y Portugal

Gender-responsive public procurement have been established as a tool to contribute to the reduction of labor gaps and the economic empowerment of women, generating positive impacts. In 2022, the Ecuadorian Institute for Public Procurement (SERCOP) published the frst gender-responsive public procurement study, revealing that women participate in only 18.29% of the public market. In this context, it is essential to analyze the only procedure that explicitly included an element related to gender equality: the ‘Feria Inclusiva’ procedure. Through doctrine and complemented by a statistical analysis of the 2018-2021 period, this paper analyzes the participation of women in the ‘Feria Inclusiva’ procedure and its main characteristics linked to gender equality as an evaluation criterion. The main fndings suggest that gender gaps regarding management positions, amounts and volume of public contracts are smaller than the global trend. However, it would not be due to the application of the gender equality parameter, but rather it would be a collateral effect of the preferences applied to the smallest enterprises. The reduced incidence of the equality parameter in the awarding of contracts is also evident.

The Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE) in Ecuador finds a strategic ally in public procurement for its development. This article explores the relationship between the SSE and public procurement in Ecuador, specifically analyzing how the acquisition of goods and services from organizations within the Popular and Solidarity Economy (PSE) can contribute to strengthening the local productive fabric, promoting equity, and social justice. The present study examines the strategic role of public procurement in Ecuador in driving the Social and Solidarity Economy (SSE). The methodology employed includes a comprehensive analysis of public policies, current legislation, and case studies. The study examines the regulatory advances that recognize the SSE as a fundamental pillar of the Ecuadorian economic system, as well as the challenges faced in its effective implementation. Additionally, practical cases are presented to illustrate the potential of the PSE organizations in public procurement, and recommendations are proposed to strengthen its integration into the State’s procurement processes. This work aims to contribute to the debate on the importance of the PSE in Ecuador’s economic and social development and to identify strategies to consolidate its role in building a more just and sustainable future.

The choice to enter the sustainable development market is a common process that connects countries with different economic, cultural, and traditional lifestyles from East to West, albeit with varying outcomes. The European Union has integrated sustainability goals into its policies, strategies, and rules concerning public procurement. In this context, the Italian model is characterized by the innovative value of solutions adopted for green and socially sustainable contracts, directions now also favored by EU legislators. The principle of do no signifcant harm (DNSH) is among the most promising tools for developing public contracts in support of decarbonization goals and, more broadly, the green transition. All these innovations depict an evolution in the European public procurement system, where its initial economic connotation plays an instrumental role in achieving the objectives of the European social pillar and ecological transition.

Traditionally, public procurement was simply conceived as a means for States to acquire goods and services, with price as the sole criterion for efficiency. Other factors, such as quality or social impact, were not given relevance. However, over time, this vision has changed due to social, economic, climatic, and cultural transformations. Today, various public policies are promoted that have given rise to new approaches in public procurement, such as strategic public procurement, green procurement, sustainable public procurement, and the concept of ‘value for money’. These new forms of procurement not only aim to obtain goods and services at fair prices but also seek to generate a positive impact on the social, environmental, and economic landscape. This article explores how the development of public procurement with social value includes criteria such as the promotion of small businesses, gender equity, sustainability, and social inclusion. In this way, public procurement becomes a tool to advance broader objectives, contributing to sustainable development and the creation of a more inclusive and responsible market. This marks a new era in which public procurement aims to fulfill social and environmental goals, beyond merely economic ones.

Mexico has established itself as a country of mixed mobility flows: emigration, immigration, return, transit, asylum, and temporary settlement. This article analyzes the migration policy as the State’s primary instrument in this reality, focusing on Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s (AMLO) six-year term (2018–2024) and the idea of a “new era in migration policy.” We identify three contradictions and three specific omissions. 1) Tension between long-term, structurally focused proposals aimed at community development, poverty reduction, and inequality as strategies to address the root causes of migration, and the migration containment actions and border militarization in collaboration with the United States. 2) Limited response, attention, and resources dedicated to the support of Mexicans abroad, a priority in the public discourse. 3)Tensions in the role of organized civil society, which shifts from being considered an ally to being confronted and excluded from decision-making spaces and discussions on migration issues. The three significant omissions are: asylum policy, internal displacement, and integration policies for migrants, refugees, and returnees.

During the administration of Andrés Manuel López Obrador (AMLO) from 2018 to 2024, the federal government continued and deepened recentralization policies already present under previous administrations. To achieve this, it pursued both explicit legal reforms and more subtle changes that, while not formally altering the distribution of responsibilities between federal and subnational levels, redefined the intergovernmental balance of power in favor of the center. This article focuses on one of the most emblematic measures of the administration: the creation of the Delegations for Development Programs and the officials in charge of them, commonly known as “superdelegados” (superdelegates). It argues that, although this reform was justified in administrative terms, its primary aim was to expand the federal government’s territorial presence in the states and increase its influence over local dynamics. This was particularly relevant in the early years of AMLO’s administration, when Morena controlled only a limited number of governorships. The article examines this reform within the framework of recent literature on recentralization. Drawing on an original database, it analyzes the profile of the superdelegates and presents three key findings: the high turnover in some states, their predominantly political rather than technical background and close ties to Morena, and the significant proportion of superdelegates who left their positions to seek electoral candidacies.

This article analyzes the design and implementation of four procedural instruments central to the operation of social policy under the administration of Andrés Manuel López Obrador: the so-called super-delegates, a new “Welfare Census”, the apparatus of social workers known as Servidores de la Nación (Servants of the Nation), and the Development Integration Centers. After describing the model that presumed their effective operation, we analyze the actual implementation of each of these components, drawing on official documents, news coverage, program evaluations, and the emerging academic literature on the subject. We contrast their expected operation with their actual deployment. We argue that their effectiveness varied significantly and that they required ongoing calibration during the administration, with some being discarded and others replaced. We conclude that these procedural instruments operate in a disjointed manner, failing to achieve necessary synergies for effective social program coordination: they fail to properly identify beneficiaries, characterize their needs, bring government services closer to people, deliver the goods or services, and monitor them.

This study examines how President López Obrador’s (AMLO) energy policy–centered on “energy sovereignty” through strengthening the Federal Electricity Commission (CFE)–collided with Mexico’s national climate mitigation targets and the shift toward renewables. Using political economy analysis, the article traces government decisions, opposition from companies and NGOs, and external influences from both the Trump and Biden administrations and the USMCA. The government’s reorientation marginalized the renewable sector, triggering litigation and creating a climate policy vacuum. International pressure, particularly from the Biden administration, along with domestic opposition prompted policy adjustments after 2021, though fundamental contradictions persisted. The findings reveal a rise in GHG emissions, underscoring the urgency of rethinking energy sovereignty within the global climate crisis. Thus, the Mexican case demonstrates that left-wing governments may adopt divergent strategies for the energy transition, shaped by historical, institutional, and geopolitical factors. The study concludes by highlighting the need for policies that integrate the expansion of clean energies as a key component of energy self-sufficiency and security, thereby transcending the false dichotomy between state control of fossil fuels and a free-market approach to renewables.

Some authors discuss political dealignment, while others point to a process of critical realignment with the emergence of the National Regeneration Movement (Morena) and the subsequent alternation of power following the 2018 presidential election. In this article, I analyze the main changes in the Mexican political system between 2018 and 2024, aiming to answer two questions: What types of parties competed in the 2024 presidential elections, and what kind of party system is in the making after the June 2 elections?