What are the major pros and cons of NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement)?
Pros: * The accord has stimulated democratic reform and opened markets in Mexico. * According to the Bush administration, the agreement has been “improving lives and reducing poverty in Mexico.” * The administration also claims that NAFTA has led to income gains and tax cuts amounting to about $930 each year for the average U.S. household of four. Cons: * The agreement has taken a toll on both U.S. and Mexican jobs, according to the Institute for Policy Studies (IPS). While real wages for Mexican manufacturing workers declined 13.5%, more than half a million U.S. employees have entered government retraining programs after their companies moved production south or north of the border, says IPS. * NAFTA has wiped out Canadian social programs, purports IPS. * The pact has also destroyed Mexico’s small farmers, says IPS, bringing in an influx of subsidized U.S. food imports. In fact, about 1.3 million farm jobs have been lost since 1993, indicates a recent report by the Carnegie Endowment
