Brugada announces an investment of more than 12 billion pesos for the Public Care System in Mexico City

MEXICO CITY (apro) – The head of government, Clara Brugada, announced an investment of more than 12 billion pesos for the creation and operation of the Public Care System of Mexico City, one of the banners she has raised with her official discourse.

According to the president, the resources will be applied over six years and will be distributed among new infrastructure, maintenance and operation, support for caregivers and care cooperatives.

The proposal includes the construction of 1,116 new care spaces, including 300 childcare centers, 200 day centers for the elderly, 200 rehabilitation centers, 16 long-term care homes, 200 community dining halls, 200 free laundries, and 200 training centers for co-responsible masculinities.

Brugada reported that of the total investment, 1.6 billion pesos will be allocated to new infrastructure, 6.2 billion to maintenance and operation, 1 billion to direct support for caregivers, 900 million to long-term care homes, and 100 million to care cooperatives.

In addition, the mayor announced the submission of two initiatives to the Mexico City Congress: a constitutional reform to Article 9 to eliminate the sexual division of labor, and the Public Care System Law, which seeks to establish principles of universality, accessibility and progressivity as a shared responsibility between the State, families and the private sector.

In a press conference, Brugada stated that the system aims to reverse the inequality women face in unpaid care work. She said that domestic and care work represents 26% of the national Gross Domestic Product, and that 90% of those who dedicate more than 40 hours a week to these tasks in the capital are women.

The head of government highlighted that the "City That Cares for Those Who Care for Us" program will provide financial support to 45,000 full-time caregivers. According to government projections, the system will offer 10 million services annually for senior citizens and five million for people with disabilities, with the capacity to provide daily care for 48,000 people.

The project also includes the creation of an Early Childhood Education System, for which he highlighted the creation of 300 new childcare centers —200 operated by the Government and 100 by cooperatives— that will serve 66,000 girls and boys.

During the announcement, the Secretary of Inclusion and Welfare, Araceli Damián, explained that the new law will establish a governing board chaired by the Head of Government and comprised of government agencies and boroughs, as well as a social participation mechanism made up of caregivers, service users, civil society organizations, and academic institutions. Every six years, a diagnostic assessment and goals will be issued for 2050, the year in which full coverage of the system is projected to be achieved.