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In rural areas of Mexico, 61 per cent of people were living beneath the national rural poverty line in 2010, according to World Bank data. Given that the country’s rural population was estimated at about 25 million, more than 15 million people in those areas were living in poverty.

In general, three factors determine poverty status in Mexico:
 

• Geographic area and proximity to urban centres – this proximity  offers opportunities for income diversification + the incidence of rural poverty is highest in remote areas far from cities
• Ethnicity – the poverty rate in indigenous communities is well above the rate for the non-indigenous population
• Gender – women head most single-parent households and face a lack of job opportunities and access to productive resources.

Why are rural people poor in Mexico?

The causes of rural poverty in Mexico are partly structural. Poverty arises from a lack of access to basic services such as health, education, sanitation and housing – and to productive resources such as land, technology, knowledge and credit, which would enable small farmers to improve their productivity and income.

The causes are also partly transitional, triggered by economic crises that have hindered economic and social development. According to a report issued in February 2012 by the National Council for Evaluation of Social Development Policy, or CONEVAL, food price increases and the lack of long-term economic growth have reduced household purchasing power and contributed to poverty in Mexico.

In addition, rural poverty reflects the income inequalities that prevail in the region. For example, while Mexico’s GDP per capita is US$8,920, the average income of the poorest 20 per cent of the rural population is US$456 per year.

Where do they live?

Rural poverty in Mexico is concentrated in areas with large indigenous populations, notably in the southern states. According to a Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung report, 75 per cent of indigenous people in the country were living below the poverty line and 39 per cent were in extreme poverty in 2009. In Oaxaca, Chiapas and Guerrero States, extreme poverty affects more than half of the population.

The rural poverty rate dropped somewhat in the early 2000s due to a significant increase in public and private transfers – mainly in the form of remittances – as well as an expansion of rural non-farm employment and rural development programmes. However, the rate went back up with the global economic crisis later in the decade. Violence has also taken a toll on the country’s stability and development, with more than 15,000 people killed in drug-related incidents in 2010.
 

Source: IFAD