Background on Claudia Sheinbaum and Water Management
Claudia Sheinbaum, the President of Mexico City, has announced a series of legal reforms to regain control over water management. This move aims to eliminate the neoliberal model that treated water as a commodity and instead recognize it as a human right and national asset.
Addressing Water Mismanagement
Sheinbaum highlighted that over 50,000 irregular concessions divert water from agricultural uses to commercial purposes, such as real estate developments, golf courses, and resorts. These actions directly impact human consumption water availability and agricultural products.
Proposed Legal Reforms
- Reform to the National Water Act
- Creation of a General Water Law
- Establishment of a National Water Registry
- Implementation of a Single Window for Transparency and Efficiency in Processes
- Facilitation Decree and National Agreement for the Human Right to Water and Sustainability
Conagua’s Progress in Water Concession Review
During a press conference, Efraín Morales López, the General Director of Mexico’s National Water Commission (Conagua), presented updates on the Water Concession Ordering Program.
Conagua conducted a thorough review of 482,140 concession titles (out of a total of 536,000) to combat illegal hoarding, water theft (huachicol hídrico), and unequal access to water resources.
After analyzing 90% of the titles, Conagua detected 58,938 inconsistencies. Common issues included:
1. Suspected document falsification
2. Misuse of concessions (e.g., agricultural concessions used for industrial purposes)
3. Absence of validity dates
4. Incorrect geographical coordinates or “ghost” wells that don’t produce water but are used to illegally sell non-existent rights)
More than 4 billion cubic meters of water have been “deprivatized” and reassigned to priority uses like human consumption and sustainable agriculture.
Private Sector Response
The private sector’s response has been generally subdued. They argue that most concessions were legally granted under the 1992 National Water Act and that detected irregularities are isolated or inherited from previous administrations.
Concamin, representing industrialists, stated that they consume 9% of the nation’s water, operate with valid titles, and pay for usage, contributing around 10 billion pesos annually in tax revenue.
The Coordinating Business Council (CCE) warned that the “deprivatization” process might discourage private investment, which accounts for 15% of the GDP, as it fails to distinguish between hoarders and legitimate users.
Under the National Agreement for the Human Right to Water and Sustainability (signed in November 2024), irrigation districts and industrial companies committed to returning over 2.5 billion cubic meters of unused water, described by Conagua as “voluntary deprivatization.”
Citi Sells 25% of Banamex to Fernando Chico Pardo
Banamex, one of Mexico’s top four financial groups, will now be under Mexican ownership following Citi’s agreement with Fernando Chico Pardo to purchase 25% of Banamex’s shares.
The deal, estimated at 42 billion pesos, concludes a previous sexennium’s announcement that failed to materialize due to exaggerated and absurd conditions set by former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador.
