For over two decades, Fundar has been providing support for the struggle to pursue equality and the elimination of all forms of violence against women. Based on an analysis of budgets and public policies developed from a gender perspective, we have aimed to reduce inequalities, improve access to justice, and decrease the violence experienced by women.
In 2022, we conducted the study Presupuestos etiquetados. Análisis del Anexo Transversal 13. Erogaciones para la Igualdad entre Mujeres y Hombres [Earmarked Budgets. Analysis of the Cross-Section Annex 13. Expenditure for Equality between Men and Women], in which we showed how resources for programs, public policies, and institutions geared at eradicating violence and achieving substantive equality for women have been cut: 87% of the resources from Annex 13 were earmarked for the government’s priority social programs, which do not have a gender approach. Although there has been an exponential increase in the Annex 13 budget since 2018, the resources are not allocated according to a methodology that considers the differentiated contexts and impacts for women’s lives as a cross-cutting element, despite the alarming conditions of violence, discrimination, and inequality they experience.
As part of the budgetary discussion, and together with partner organizations such as Centro por la Justicia y el Derecho Internacional (CEJIL) and Red Nacional de Refugios, we contributed evidence and stressed the urgency to increase the available budget for agendas of inequality and for stopping violence against women to position it within the public debate. Our advocacy work and research contributed to five programs that are directly linked to women’s rights, non-discrimination, and violence-free lives, gaining budget increases totaling around 95.5 million pesos instead of undergoing budget cuts; among them are the programs “Apoyo para Refugios Especializados para Mujeres Víctimas de Violencia de Género, sus hijas e hijos” (Support for Specialized Shelters for Female Victims of Gender Violence and Their Children); “Promover la Atención y Prevención de la Violencia contra las Mujeres” (Promoting Assistance and Prevention for Violence Against Women), and “Apoyo a las Instancias de Mujeres en las Entidades Federativas” (PAIMEF) (Support for Women’s Agencies in Federal Entities). This meant an overall increase of 8% in the approved budget for these programs in comparison to what was initially proposed for the 2023 tax year.
At the same time, we developed the study Buscando el camino. Presupuesto y compra de medicamentos para la salud sexual y reproductiva de las mujeres [Finding the Way. Budget and Purchase of Medicine for Women’s Sexual and Reproductive Heath] as part of the series Salud para Todes [Health for All], where we provided evidence of the fact that the budget for purchasing medicine for women’s sexual and reproductive health without social security is steadily decreasing and there are more difficulties with its traceability and accountability. Therefore, it is harder to know how this expense is being handled, making evidence to defend this right inaccessible, as there is no information about which institutions are responsible for purchasing these medicines. Based on the research, we formed a partnership with Comité Promotor por una Maternidad Segura, Mano Vuelta AC, and Fundación Mexicana para la Planeación Familiar, and together we presented technical proposals to the Mexican Chamber of Deputies’ Gender Equality Commission to increase resources for sexual and reproductive health during the budgetary negotiations for next year’s Federal Expenditure Budget. While the Gender Equality Commission did request an increase in the allocation based on our proposals, the request was not considered for final budget approval during the plenary session. However, with these efforts, we laid the foundations to advocate for this process beginning in early 2023.