Mexico's Health Country Report

II. General Information of the Country

Geography:

Geopolitically Mexico is entirely considered part of North America, along with Canada and the United Stares.

Mexico’s total area is 1,972,550 km2, making the world`s 14th largest country by total area, and includes approximately 6,000 km2 of islands in the Pacific Ocean, Gulf of Mexico, Caribbean, and Gulf of California. On its North, Mexico shares border with the United States. On its South Mexico shares border with Guatemala and Belize. Mexico is crossed from north to south by two mountain ranges known as the Sierra Madre Oriental and Sierra Madre Occidental, which are the extension of the Rocky Mountains from North America. As such, the majority of the Mexican central and northern territories are located at high altitudes, and the highest elevations are found at the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt: Pico de Orizaba, Popocatepetl, and Iztaccihuatl.

Climate:

The Tropic of Cancer effectively divides the country into temperate and tropical zones. Land north of the twenty-fourth parallel experiences cooler temperatures during the winter months. South of the twenty-fourth parallel, temperatures are fairly constant year round and vary solely as a function of elevation. This gives Mexico one of the world’s most diverse weather system.

Many large cities in Mexico are located in the Valley of Mexico or in adjacent valleys with altitudes generally above 2,000 m. This gives them a year-round temperate climate with yearly temperature averages (from 16 to 18 °C) and cool nighttime temperatures throughout the year.

Many parts of Mexico, particularly the north, have a dry climate with sporadic rainfall while parts of the tropical lowlands in the south average more than 2,000 mm of annual precipitation. For example, many cities in the north like Monterrey, Hermosillo, and Mexicali experience temperatures of 40 °C or more in summer. In the Sonoran Desert temperatures reach 50 °C or more.

Population:

The recently conducted 2010 Census showed a population of 112,336,538, of which 50.1% are women.

Official language:

The country has the largest Spanish-speaking population in the world with almost a third of all Spanish native speakers. As of 2005 there are 10.1 million Mexicans who speak an indigenous language and claim indigenous heritage, representing 9.8% of the total population.

Social and Culture:

Mexico is ethnically diverse, the various indigenous peoples and European immigrants are united under a single national identity. The core part of Mexican national identity is formed on the basis of a synthesis of European culture with Indigenous cultures in a process known as mestizaje, alluding to the mixed biological origins of the majority of Mexicans.

Education:

In Mexico the people above 15 years have a scholar level of 8.6 grades in average, which means a little more than second year of secondary school. According to the 2010 Population Census, 6% of the men and 8% of the women of 15 years and more don’t know to read and write. At a global leve, México has the 55th place in the Education for All UNESCO’s Index, which measures the access to quality educative services. In México 8 of every 10 Indigenous don’t count with basic education. 17% of the national population has a college education.

Economy:

While Mexico's official unemployement rate is fairly low, 4.5%, 4.3 million workers are classified as underemployed, while 14.2 million others work in the underground economy. Just 16.9 million Mexican workers have benefits such as health insurance. The problem is that Mexico is not a poor country, but rather a country of poor people, where substantial inequality in the distribution of wealth exists, along with monopolies and oligopolies and an economic policy without a social objective.

Gross Domestic Products (GDP):

The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Mexico was worth 1155.32 billion US dollars in 2011. The GDP value of Mexico represents 1.86 percent of the world economy. GDP in Mexico is reported by the The World Bank Group.

For the full-year of 2012, the growth reached 3.9 percent. Mexico is the second largest national economy in Latin America.

Per Capita Income:

Per Capita Income $15,300 (2012 est.)

GDP Composition by Sectors:

Agriculture: 3.7%

Industry: 34.2%

Services: 62.1% (2012 est.)

Major Import Goods:

Mexico imports mainly metalworking machines, steel mill products, agricultural machinery, electrical equipment, car parts for assembly, repair parts for motor vehicles and aircrafts. Its main import partner is United States. Mexico also imports from European Union, China and Japan.

Major Export Goods:

Mexico is the biggest exporter in Latin America. Mexico’s major exports are: manufactured goods, oil and oil products, silver, fruits,

...