Peace That Pays

In Mexico, crime prevention has moved beyond being solely a public security issue: it is now a key variable in competitiveness, investment attraction, and social stability. In a context where the country recorded a historic trade volume with the United States of $873 billion in 2025 and attracted approximately $41 billion in foreign direct investment, the message to its trade partners across the Americas, Europe, Asia, Africa, and Oceania is clear: producing more is not enough—territories must also become more predictable, cities more livable, and local governments more capable of containing violence without normalizing it.

There are advances worth noting. According to preliminary figures cited by international media, Mexico’s average daily homicides dropped from 86.9 in September 2024 to 52.4 in December 2025, a decline close to 40%. Additionally, the national homicide rate in 2025 reached 17.5 per 100,000 inhabitants, the lowest level since 2015. However, the same reports highlight a critical imbalance: seven states still account for more than half of all homicides nationwide. In other words, national improvement exists, but it has yet to translate into uniform peace or sufficient territorial certainty for economic development.

This is where the real challenge emerges: peace is not measured only by fewer visible deaths, but by a reduced everyday sense of fear. Mexico’s National Urban Public Security Survey reported that in December 2025, 63.8% of the urban population felt unsafe in their city, while only 29.9% perceived their municipal government as effective in addressing major problems. This gap is striking because it reveals the disconnect between statistical progress and lived experience. When citizens continue to alter routes, schedules, and habits due to fear, local economies shift as well: nightlife declines, public space usage drops, logistics costs rise, and neighborhood-level consumption weakens.

The National Survey of Victimization reinforces this perspective. In 2024, 23.1 million adults were victims of at least one crime, and 29% of households reported at least one victim. By 2025, insecurity remained the country’s top concern for 64.2% of the population. Even more alarming is the persistence of underreporting: extortion cases had a 97% dark figure, kidnapping 98.1%, and in 39.2% of reported cases, “nothing happened.” When reporting a crime seems pointless, the foundation of a culture of peace erodes, and crime gains practical legitimacy.

For this reason, crime prevention cannot remain limited to patrols, checkpoints, or extraordinary deployments. Mexican academic institutions emphasize that social prevention must be built on human rights approaches, gender perspective, community development, and education for a culture of peace. The central idea is clear: preventing violence requires addressing its causes, not just managing its consequences. International academic analyses have also shown how fear reorganizes daily life, isolates communities, concentrates resources, and deepens inequality. Insecurity does not only kill—it redistributes opportunities in favor of those who can afford protection.

This matters deeply for international economics. The OECD has identified crime as a major concern for both businesses and citizens in Mexico, estimating that it reduces economic growth by approximately 1 to 2 percentage points annually. Its 2026 economic survey suggests that improving rule of law and reducing corruption could raise Mexico’s real GDP per capita by 3.1% within ten years and by 13.5% over thirty years. Meanwhile, the IMF has indicated that if Latin America reduced crime to the global average, annual growth would increase by about 0.5 percentage points. It also warns that in countries with high crime-related concerns, a surge in crime can reduce GDP by around 1% in subsequent years and up to 2% over a five-year horizon.

The signals in the current landscape are contradictory. While the Mexican government highlights recent actions against extortion, including the arrest of more than 100 individuals and the seizure of nearly 200 properties in the State of Mexico, public debate acknowledges that this crime had increased by over 23% between 2019 and 2025. At the same time, the upcoming 2026 World Cup has placed Mexico’s security conditions under international scrutiny, with human rights organizations warning about risks related to militarization and abuse. This creates a critical tension: the kind of peace that attracts investment cannot be built at the expense of public trust, because security without legitimacy also drives capital away.

The challenge ahead is to transform containment into structural change. Mexico needs stronger local police forces, more robust civic justice systems, enhanced financial intelligence, smarter use of technology, and less reliance on punitive spectacle. Recent data shows that only 508 municipalities had formally established civic courts, and the national rate of municipal police officers stood at just 1.3 per 1,000 inhabitants. Without this institutional foundation, a culture of peace risks remaining rhetorical. And without a culture of peace, crime prevention will not become a development strategy—it will remain merely a statistical truce.

We want to hear from you: Should Mexico prioritize social prevention, institutional intelligence, or strengthening local governments to build lasting peace? Share your thoughts and join the conversation.

Written by: Editorial

#CrimePrevention #CultureOfPeace #MexicoGlobal #SecurityAndDevelopment #interAlcaldes