Poverty+in+Mexico

Return Public Policy in Mexico page

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Despite the prevalent economic inequality and the large percentage of citizens below the poverty line, a new government initiative to cut government spending eliminated hundreds of thousands of jobs and ended many subsidies to government agencies. Also, the inefficient social welfare system does little to reduce the growing gap between the rich and the poor. It is estimated that almost half of the Mexican population (44.2%) lives below the poverty line, which is defined as being unable to acquire basic necessities such as food and clothing; in 2008, as much as 10.5% of the population suffered from extreme poverty. Those living in rural areas are even more likely to live in poverty than those in more urban centers. This creates a geographical distribution of poverty, where the southern portion of the country is the poorest and has the highest concentrations of unemployment. Furthermore, the tradition of corruption has historically led to the uneven distribution of wealth, which further encourages poverty. The past reliance on foreign trade and the influence of other countries in the form of economic policies (for example, the implementation of structural adjustment) has been detrimental to the economy as a whole, which has undoubtedly fueled poverty within Mexico. =====

One government initiative to help reduce poverty is the Oportunidades program, which was implemented in 2002 by the Social Development Secretary. This expanded the previous program, PROGRESA, by extending coverage to the urban poor and helped aid high school students. However, the success of this program appears to be fairly limited, largely due to economic restraints.

 The geographic distribution of poverty in Mexico.

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__Public Opinion __ Many Mexicans resent the growing gap between the rich and the poor, which is often blamed on the rapid economic growth. For example, the poorest 40% of the population never earns more than 11% of total wages. The poorest portion of the population, especially, desires a change in the current uneven distribution of wealth.

Key: Poverty Line 1: Food Poverty Line 2: Capability Poverty Line 3: Patrimony Non-poor

__Party Opinion__

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During the 1970's, the PRI attempted to increase social welfare spending, but their efforts were soon halted by the following economic crisis. Later, this party created social programs through the Alliance for Production, Global Development Plan, el COPLAMAR, and the Mexican Nourishing System. These programs proved to make progress in the area of alleviating economic inequalities. Also, average salaries increased and spending on education did as well. However, much of this progress was abandoned after oil prices crashed in 1982.=====

__Implications__ The extreme amount of poverty in Mexico makes it more difficult for the country to become an efficient established democracy. The lack of income, particularly in the south, leads to low education levels and poor quality of life; those with less education are more likely to not vote in national elections at all. Furthermore, widespread poverty means less revenue for the government through taxation. The inequality in income levels leads to a lack of unity among classes and can cause the middle class to almost disappear entirely. General consequences of poverty also include higher crime rates, drug problems, and corruption.

Poverty also serves as a major cleavage in Mexican society. The unequal distribution of wealth mentioned above creates a vast separation between the elite business class and the majority of poorer Mexicans--the latter rarely cashes in on the successes of Mexico's economy. This significant inequality is also punctuated by the relative levels of education that each receives, which only widens the gap. This cleavage translates to the political sphere as well, since citizens often vote along class lines and the party structure reflects that fact.

Although this chart is a few years old, it clearly displays the differences in poverty between urban and rural areas.

Poverty has many more implications than just political ones; for example, the concentrations of child malnutrition seen in this chart are clearly located in the poorest areas.


 * **Household Consumption in PPP Terms** ||
 * **Country** || **All food** || **Clothing and footwear** || **Fuel and power** || **Health care** || **Education** || **Transport & Communications** || **Other** ||
 * Mexico || 30 || 6 || 4 || 2 || 7 || 5 || 46 ||
 * United States || 13 || 9 || 9 || 4 || 6 || 8 || 51 ||
 * Brazil || 22 || 13 || 18 || 15 || 34 || 4 || -6 ||
 * Canada || 14 || 5 || 10 || 4 || 21 || 9 || 38 ||