Mexico: an unclear and disparate resumption in economic activity

Since 01 June, driven by pressure from economic sectors as well as part of the population, Mexico is now committed to the ‘new normal’, as the government has called its program for the resumption of economic activity. Amid a plateauing in the Covid-19 pandemic and after more than two months of economic shutdown, this complex federal protocol, comprising a red, orange, yellow and green traffic light system depending on the health situation, aims to orchestrate the resumption of economic activities. However, currently almost all of the 32 states are ‘red,’ which means that only what are deemed ‘essential’ activities can restart. Only the ‘orange’ state of Zacatecas can initiate the gradual reopening of what are deemed ‘non-essential’ activities.