Quintana Roo Gains Financial Independence Through Spending Controls, Governor Says

Chetumal, Quintana Roo — Gov. Mara Lezama said Monday that improved financial discipline and tighter controls on spending have allowed Quintana Roo to increase revenue and reduce inherited debt, giving the state greater financial independence.

Lezama pointed to Fitch Ratings’ decision to upgrade the state’s credit rating from A to AA, placing Quintana Roo among only three Mexican states with a positive outlook. She said the higher rating means public funds can be channeled into more infrastructure and services for residents.

“A better rating means more infrastructure, more investment, well-paid jobs and confidence in national and foreign investment,” Lezama said. “We got there through sound management of public resources, healthy finances, financial discipline, a fight against corruption and higher revenue collection. We did not take on debt; instead, we paid off the long-term liabilities left by the previous administration, which exceeded 7 billion pesos. Quintana Roo is now among the three best-rated states in the country, and that is what the people deserve — their money returns to the people.”

The governor said reducing that inherited debt has helped attract investment and consolidate strategic projects that generate jobs and broaden the state’s economy.

She said those results will be detailed in her fourth and penultimate government report, scheduled for Sept. 6 in Chetumal. The exact venue has not yet been announced.

“The report will be in our capital, Chetumal,” Lezama said. “We are still deciding where. As always, it will be an opportunity to report to the people — an honest, transparent government — and to tell residents across the state how we are doing. The date is Sept. 6, somewhere along the bay.”

Lezama added that the final year of her administration will bring major announcements, including new hospitals, highways, university infrastructure and airport-related projects, as well as proposals developed in coordination with the federal government.