Program Overview and Current Status
According to data from Mexico’s Secretariat of Well-being, only 270,245 children, adolescents, and young adults received support from the “Program of Support for the Well-being of Girls and Boys, Children of Working Mothers” between January and September 2024. This number is far less than the estimated target population of over 1.5 million.
Of these beneficiaries, 221,117 belong to Modality A, designed for children under 4 years old (or up to 6 with disabilities), accounting for just 14% of the target population. Meanwhile, 49,128 beneficiaries were attended under Modality B, for orphans of mothers, which is less than 2% of the estimated total for this group.
Budget and Efficiency Concerns
The program’s low coverage contrasts with the level of resources expended. Originally budgeted at 3,067.71 million pesos, it was reduced to 2,477.49 million pesos during the year. By September, 2,114.88 million pesos had been exercised, which is 90.86% of the annual budget. However, only 17% of the target population has received support, raising questions about the efficiency of spending.
In terms of annual general goals, 95.24% of the Modality A delivery objective (822,619) and 103.03% of the Modality B objective (300,000) were met. However, these percentages are calculated over a much smaller initial estimate (1 million 320,000 and 300,000, respectively).
Another indicator of the program’s lag is the formation of Social Control Committees: of the 2,744 committees planned for 2024, only 1,474 have been created, which is just 53.72% of the annual target.
Limited Programs and Unclear Objectives
Experts have stated that the federal program for the Support of Girls and Boys, Children of Working Mothers aims to ensure children’s development and well-being but has a limited impact on the structural needs of children and adolescents in Mexico. Moreover, it lacks clear objectives.
Patricia Ganem, coordinator of the Investigation Research Observatory with Rumbo, criticized the persistence of an assistentialist logic without evaluating the real impact of the support. “We see no orientation towards concrete goals in these programs and we observe an indiscriminate distribution of resources, without knowing if those who receive them genuinely need them,” she said in an interview with El Economista.
The expert lamented the absence of diagnostics that allow measuring the effect of support on children’s development. “We have been doing this for six years, and we are about to complete the seventh, without evidence of the impact of these programs. We don’t know where the money is spent or if there are improvements in children’s health, education, or neurophysiological development,” she stated.
She also emphasized the need for greater transparency. “It’s not necessary to know names, but it is important to know what percentage of children were supported in each entity and where the support was concentrated,” she said.
On the other hand, she advocated for moving beyond direct cash transfer models and building a national care infrastructure. “Instead of giving out money, it’s better to invest in childcare centers, nurseries, and community stay facilities, as well as training professionals to care for this population,” she argued.
Jesús Villalobo, a member of Mexico’s Child Rights Network, also expressed concerns. “These programs are merely palliative measures; they slightly regulate the problem’s origin but do not address its causes,” he said. “We see a bottomless well: money is given out left and right without any clear direction.”
He pointed out that although the budget for social programs has increased, resources are not directed towards initiatives that genuinely create development opportunities. “The official discourse claims to address causes, but there is no analysis of programs that truly do so. If we say these programs are ineffective, they serve even less when allocated to only a portion of the population,” he concluded.
Villalobos stressed that the fundamental change should focus on educational investment, not symbolic events. “Recently, they organized a mass boxing class. Money was spent on promotion and t-shirts, but the problem’s origin was not addressed. A class serves no purpose,” he criticized.
He also lamented the lack of comprehensive public policies with a rights-based approach: “This population segment is not considered. There are no programs that give them participation or real long-term opportunities,” he said.
Proposed Solutions
Patricia Ganem suggested a series of measures to redesign the program: create a detailed database on beneficiary children, allocate resources only to those who genuinely need them, and monitor the evolution of children’s and their families’ conditions.
