Uncertainty at Bienesca 2021 and 2022: what we know at the moment

Given the Revocation of Mandate Consultation on April 10, an advance was announced for the delivery of social programs such as scholarships and...
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Given the Revocation of Mandate Consultation on April 10, an advance was announced for the delivery of social programs such as scholarships and supports. Beneficiaries of Wellness programs in March will receive a double payment. However, the picture differs for the fishing sector. During the first quarter of 2022, Conapesca has made no announcements about the dispersion of $7,200 support to fishermen and aquaculturists.

On how Bienesca will operate in 2022, the only information so far is the 2022 Operating Rules published at the end of 2021 (more information). In addition to the lack of information about the program this year, the lack of information about the beneficiaries in 2021 creates uncertainty.

Unlike previous years, Conapesca has not presented a closing and counting of the program's beneficiaries. In the same way, there is still no list of final beneficiaries. The only available information is the number of beneficiaries in the first three quarters of 2021 published on the National Transparency Platform (PNT).

According to information from the PNT, during the first 9 months, $1,263.8 million pesos were granted to more than 175,532 beneficiaries. However, according to the Ministry of Finance, the Program's Modified Budget for Conapesca is $1,472.9 million pesos, so there is still no accountability for $209.1 million pesos that were surely dispersed during the last quarter of 2021. However, this information is missing to corroborate it.

Considering these preliminary data, it is notable that the distribution between regions has improved. Previously, the Northwest region received more than 60% of fishing subsidies (more information). In this regard, it highlights that the state of Veracruz has almost the same number of beneficiaries as Sinaloa. As for the beneficiaries/beneficiaries ratio, it remains constant with 21% of beneficiaries.

On the other hand, the available lists of beneficiaries include only the name of the person, entity, age and gender. With this information, as in 2020, it is not possible to know if they were really intended for people in the fishing and aquaculture sector. In addition, it should be noted that during the first trimester, the names of 4 beneficiaries were not reported.

Without a doubt, since Bienesca is now the only subsidy, it is important to improve the distribution of this support. Conapesca needs to have an implementation schedule, in addition to having mechanisms to ensure that the beneficiaries are part of the sector. Although this year's Operating Rules include more information and selection criteria, they need to be properly implemented and there must be transparency in the process.

Written by

Sara Chávez

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