Social Spending in Mexico: Needs, Priorities and Reforms

38 Pages Posted: 17 Feb 2022

See all articles by Swarnali Ahmed Hannan

Swarnali Ahmed Hannan

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Juan Pablo Cuesta Aguirre

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

David Bartolini

International Monetary Fund (IMF)

Date Written: October 2021

Abstract

Poverty in Mexico was high before the COVID-19 pandemic and has been exacerbated by the pandemic, with significant variation across states. Education losses from the pandemic are likely to be large and worsen pre-existing disparities; unless mitigated soon, they could contribute to heightened scarring over the medium term. Using state-level and cross-country comparisons, this paper reviews key social programs as well as priorities in education and health. It finds that higher spending and improved design of social programs (e.g., better targeting) would reduce socioeconomic gaps, mitigate scarring risks, and foster inclusive growth.

Keywords: social programs, health, education, sustainable development goals, scarring effect, losses from the pandemic, pre-existing disparity, government program, scarring risk, COVID-19, Income, Caribbean

JEL Classification: I30, I38, I20, I28, I10, I18, I12, E25

Suggested Citation

Ahmed Hannan, Swarnali and Cuesta Aguirre, Juan Pablo and Bartolini, David, Social Spending in Mexico: Needs, Priorities and Reforms (October 2021). IMF Working Paper No. 2021/244, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=4026471

Swarnali Ahmed Hannan (Contact Author)

International Monetary Fund (IMF) ( email )

700 19th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20431
United States

Juan Pablo Cuesta Aguirre

International Monetary Fund (IMF) ( email )

700 19th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20431
United States

David Bartolini

International Monetary Fund (IMF) ( email )

700 19th Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20431
United States

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