Mexico

With a population of nearly 130 million people, a rich cultural history, great diversity, and a favorable geography with abundant natural resources, Mexico ranks among the fifteen largest economies in the world and is the second largest in Latin America. The country has strong macroeconomic institutions, an open trade policy, and a diversified manufacturing base integrated into global value chains.

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Over the past three decades, Mexico has underperformed in terms of growth, inclusion, and poverty reduction compared to similar countries. Between 1980 and 2022, the economy grew by just over 2% annually on average, limiting progress in convergence with high-income economies.

Nevertheless, the official multidimensional poverty rate in Mexico —which assesses income poverty alongside six indicators of social deprivation— fell from 43.2 percent in 2016 to 36.3 percent in 2022, lifting 5.4 million people out of poverty, driven mainly by labor market outcomes, including increases in the minimum wage.

Mexico’s economic growth is projected to be 1.3 percent in 2026, with a gradual recovery reaching 1.7 percent by 2027, a level below the average growth rate of the past three years. This reflects weaker domestic and external demand, as well as uncertainty in trade policy affecting investment, particularly around the revision of the USMCA.

With a gradual improvement in growth expected toward 2027, a reduction in the poverty rate is projected. The key for Mexico to unlock its full economic potential lies in strengthening the engines of growth. This will require boosting infrastructure investment through greater mobilization of private capital, strengthening the business environment, and expanding firms’ access to financing, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises. Strengthening security, providing greater regulatory certainty, improving the quality of public services, and promoting competition represent key opportunities to consolidate growth. Likewise, advancing measures that strengthen revenues will help maintain sustainable public debt and reinforce the country’s economic stability.

The World Bank is supporting the improvement of Cameroon’s competitiveness in energy, transport, and telecommunications. Furthermore, it is seeking to support service delivery for human development through a social safety net system and local development, with a focus on providing greater access to basic public services through infrastructure upgrades and capacity building in Cameroon’s most disadvantaged regions.

On climate change, Cameroon has committed through its Nationally Determined Contributions (NDC, 2021) to reduce its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 35% (up from 32% as presented in 2015 at COP 21). Since COP21 in 2016, the WBG has integrated actions aimed at net reduction of GHG emissions and adaptation in its operations. The portfolio includes projects with climate co-benefits (CCB) of 47%. The latest Country Climate and Development Report (CCDR) for Cameroon launched in November 2022, highlights the challenges of climate change facing Cameroon’s development and outlines development priorities.

Last Updated: Mar 26, 2025

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RESULTS

The World Bank has been supporting Mexico’s efforts to deepen financial inclusion and expand access to finance, which has been a critical bottleneck for growth and poverty reduction. The World Bank has supported Mexico’s expansion of needed financial access to poor and rural populations, women, youth, and micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).

Through an established network of private financial intermediaries (PFIs), for example, the Expanding Rural Finance Project increased the availability of finance to rural MSMEs in areas where commercial banks had not been able to reach local producers. This project helped to establish and/or improve credit, risk, and management capacity of 255 small PFIs located in rural areas. Between 2016-2019, 173,981 credits for productive purposes were extended to 139,253 rural producers and MSMEs (average loan size of $1,850), of which 76% live in rural areas in the poorer states of the South, 83% are women, and 22% live in communities classified as marginalized or highly marginalized by the National Council for Population.

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The Country Partnership Framework (CPF) for Mexico was discussed by the World Bank Group (WBG) Board of Executive Directors on February 27, 2020. The CPF covers a six-year period (2020-2025) and aligns the WBG’s engagement with the government’s National Development Plan. The objectives remain highly relevant in the present context, allowing flexible and strategic adjustments to respond to the current supply and demand shocks and to support a strong resilient economy. The CPF builds on the analysis of the Systematic Country Diagnostic (SCD) and reflects the views and strategy of the authorities.

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