Poverty and inequality, Mexico's main challenges

For Mexico , and especially for the incoming administration taking office on December 1, the most urgent issues and challenges are poverty and inequality .

The diagnosis was made by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) General Secretary, José Ángel Gurría , in an interview with EL UNIVERSAL.

Now that we know the result of the public consultation about the new airport, where the Santa Lucía project was the winner, by the way, a topic that once again showed the existing polarization in Mexican society , and besides the economic and politic implications this outcome could have, for the OECD , the national problem that should be the priority for Andrés Manuel López Obrador 's government is, as it has been for decades, to fight poverty and inequality , with the additional problem that on the current context of the digital era, if nothing is done, productivity and competitiveness could be lost, and we could stagnate as a textile factory country.

Gurría

warns that we are in a very different context today, a context of a great speed, that has to do with digital platforms and technologies, therefore, it is about a new reality. “ Mexico has to catch up because if it doesn't, there is a risk of falling behind in productivity and competitiveness, therefore, in regards to opportunities, others will in be in charge of producing and will be the ones selling and us, I don't know, we're staying in the textile factory industry, right? Instead of being the final stage producers,” says the official.

In this sense, greater support from the government to science and technology development is still one of the main pending issues, and without it, we can't end the underdevelopment in large regions in Mexico , create well-paid jobs, and in short, drive the national economy . This is the only way in which we could also face other pressing matters, such as the violence and insecurity that plague our country, and that tightly related, and moreover, are originated by poverty and the lack of opportunities.

Therefore, for the OECD , we must pay attention to the fight against poverty and inequality first, and as well as equality in opportunities , access to education , healthcare , and work ; in short, a good quality of life .

Over 70% of indigenous people in Mexico live in poverty

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