Northern Mexico leads in well-being

The states along the border lead the national well-being indicators according to the results of the Multidimensional Poverty measurement for 2024, carried out for the first time by the National Institute of Statistics and Geography (Inegi).

Baja California, Baja California Sur, and Nuevo León were the states with the lowest percentages of multidimensional poverty, with 9.9%, 10.2%, and 10.6%, respectively. This indicator takes into account economic well-being and rights.

Between 2016 and 2024, the percentage of the population living in multidimensional poverty at the national level fell from 43.2% to 29.6%, equivalent to a decrease of 13.7 million people. However, the measurements show a gap between the northern and southern states of the country.

This can also be seen when comparing rural areas, where 45.8% of the population, equivalent to 13 million people, were found to be in multidimensional poverty, while in urban areas, this percentage was lower, at 25%, which in absolute terms amounted to 25.5 million people.

The methodology for measuring multidimensional poverty in the area of rights takes into account six indicators: educational backwardness, lack of access to health services, lack of access to social security, poor quality of housing, lack of access to basic housing services, and lack of access to nutritious and quality food.

As previously reported in the 2024 National Household Income and Expenditure Survey (ENIGH), Nuevo León has the highest monthly per capita income in the country, at US$613, accompanied by social security coverage reaching 75.3% of the population. In the social sphere, it stands out for having only 0.5% of its population in extreme poverty and 84.2% health coverage, areas in which it exceeds the national average.

The country's capital has 19.7% of its population living in multidimensional poverty, equivalent to 1.84 million people. It stands out in education, with only 8.5% of the population lagging behind in education, the lowest figure in the country, and in access to healthcare, where 78.2% of the population has coverage.

In addition to Nuevo León, other northern states stand out for their progress in reducing multidimensional poverty. Baja California also has the lowest percentage of the population living in extreme poverty in the country, at 0.4%, and 8.1% of its population lives in food poverty.