On Tuesday, Governor José Reyes Baeza announced that an additional $600 million pesos would be invested in Ciudad Juárez this year as part of a new program called “Immediate Action” (Acción Inmediata). When added to the original budget of $1.8 billion pesos, the border city will receive about $2.4 billion pesos. About half of these funds will come from the state government, a third from municipalities and the federal government, and the rest is financed by private entities (mainly local water treatment plants).
The Acción Inmediata program represents part of the state’s efforts to lower its high crime rates, especially those in Ciudad Juárez, by strengthening the economy. Numerous projects and initiatives have been included in the budget to help move the local economy forward and improve living conditions. Taken as a whole, these efforts form a kind of stimulus package with a mixture of demand-side and supply-side economic strategies.
The Governor listed several of these projects and the amount appropriated for them during his press conference. These include developing public spaces, sports facilities, new buildings at local schools, improving the electrical grid, investing in Juárez’s water treatment plants, housing improvements, discounts on water usage fees, free drivers licenses, debt forgiveness for school enrollments this year, and several others.
Sources:
“Dan a conocer Programa Acción Inmediata en Cd. Juárez.” El Observador Noroeste. Marzo 2, 2010.
