This book has offered an ample view of how policy analysis takes place in various government and non-governmental sectors in Mexico. It should be said, however, that many of its chapters have also discussed the ways in which several types of actor intervene in the processes of policy analysis and policymaking. The richness provided by the authors’ contributions will thus allow scholars to get a good idea not only about policy analysis in Mexico, but also about the functioning of the country's political system as a whole. While these final remarks will only focus on the authors’ general conclusions regarding policy analysis, the wider scope of this book should also be kept in mind.

Policy analysis in Mexico has been defined by both the legacy of colonial history as well as by recent social, economic and political developments. Although formally democratic and federal, throughout the 20th century the country had a clientelistic and centralized political and administrative system. It only introduced a merit-based civil service in the federal government in 2003 (which is still only partially applied and remains absent in all states and municipalities; see Dussauge-Laguna and Mendez, 2011; Grindle, 2012). Ideas from the public policy field began to be drawn in academia and government as recently as the 1990s. Policy analysis capabilities have been quite limited even at the federal level, and the greater political and administrative weight of the federal government since the 1930s has overshadowed the development of policy analysis in other instances. This longstanding dominance by the federal government has translated into a still strong influence over most policy spheres. However, the country's progress towards democratization and decentralization has meant that federal government policies have been increasingly challenged by Congress, social actors and state and local authorities (Mendez, 1999; Somuano, 2011; Beer, 2012; Nacif, 2012; Seele, 2012; Thacker, 2012; Camp, 2013).

The sections of the book have covered policy analysis in the different branches and levels of government, as well as in many other institutions. After the first section, which describes the evolution of the policy field in the country, the second section studies policy analysis at the federal level, which involves both the executive and the legislative branches.