What role does maquiladora play in the development of a country? Why is this phenomenon seen as a new phase in capitalist development? Is this a reasonable claim? The role that the maquila plays in the development of a country is an interesting topic to discuss. To understand the role that maquiladoras play, one must first gain an understanding of the original purpose of the maquila. Then, by studying the evolution of the maquiladora to a big manufacturing base, one may have a better understanding of how this type of firm may lead to the development of the host country. In the first section, I will discuss the origination and development of the maquiladoras. In section two, I will provide the opinions of some economists and their insights as to how the maquiladora has affected developing countries. The third section deals with capitalism and how maquiladoras play a role in the development of a capitalist economy. In section four, I will discuss my opinions on the arguments that I have presented. The final section will include some concluding remarks. Now, let us familiarize ourselves with the maquiladora. The word "maquiladora" is derived from the Spanish verb "maquilar", which means to mill wheat into flour. Farmers would mill wheat into portions and then give a portion to the miller; this portion was called a maquila. As time passed, the word maquila became associated with manufacturing, assembly and packaging processes that were carried out by someone that was not the original manufacturer. In today's economic world, the word "maquiladora" stands for a special type of company in Mexico (Maquila Overview 1). The component that makes the maquiladora different from any other manufacturing plant is that they are allowed to import raw materials, equipment, and parts needed for assembly, and export the finished good to the United States on a duty free basis (Maquilas 1). The first maquiladoras were bu...