A few days ago, the Aguascalientes’ government announced the definitive cancellation of the San Marcos Fair 192° edition, because of the health emergency caused by the coronavirus pandemic. This event, also known as Mexico’s Fair, takes place every year between the months of April and May. At first, it was postponed until June and July, but due to the sanitary conditions it was decided to postpone it until next year.
Due to its economic contribution, the Fair is of great importance for the state. The previous year, it registered an influx of 8.2 million visits and generated an economic spill of more than 9.5 billion pesos.
Even though, this is undoubtedly a large amount of money, right now, the most important thing is people’s health. Since, if it had not been cancelled, it is likely that the social distancing measures would not have been followed, which would have caused a high number of contagions in the entity. So despite the economic costs, the cancellation was the best decision, because we want Aguascalientes alive.
Long live Aguascalientes, that its people come first!
But this is not just about Aguascalientes and the San Marcos Fair. Because just as we want Aguascalientes alive, we want the same for all of Mexico. So far, as a result of the pandemic in the country, 256 thousand COVID-19 cases have been registered and, unfortunately, the number of deaths exceeds 30 thousand. This virus has not only caused a great impact on the number of infected and deceased people, it has also had important consequences in economic terms. According to IMF data, the country’s estimated economic growth for this year is -10.5%, the worst in 88 years. In this way, getting out of the pandemic is everyone’s responsibility, and true economic revival will depend on it.
Despite all the above, good news for our country is the new North American economic agreement, known as the T-MEC. This new treaty is vital for the country’s economic revival in the short term, especially in terms of job creation. It is worth noting that this is urgent, because, according to official data, during the months of March, April, and May, more than a million jobs were lost. In this context, President López Obrador is visiting Washington this week, to hold a meeting with his counterpart, Donald Trump.
Many have rejected this visit alleging ideological differences with the American President, but López Obrador must do everything in his power to achieve economic recovery. This must be understood by everyone. One way to overcome, both the health and economic crises, is to help each other, since the real enemy is not the United States’ President, but the virus that affects both Mexicans and Americans alike.
In this sense, the meeting is essential, and beyond all the politicking that has been done around it, the president’s visit is positive since the United States economy is strengthened by the Mexican economy and vice versa. Consequently, the visit must be understood as an institutional visit, beyond the presidents’ personality traits, as well as an essential part of Mexico’s path to economic recovery.
* Arturo Ávila Anaya, IBN/B Analitycs President and National Security Expert by Harvard (NIS).
@ArturoAvila_mx
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