Mexico: National census reveals further evidence of displacement
| Publisher | Norwegian Refugee Council/Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (NRC/IDMC) |
| Publication Date | 31 March 2011 |
| Cite as | Norwegian Refugee Council/Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (NRC/IDMC), Mexico: National census reveals further evidence of displacement, 31 March 2011, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/4d957f5f2.html [accessed 7 June 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
Mexico's national census has confirmed reports published by research institutions in 2010 showing that hundreds of thousands of people had fled from drug-cartel violence in northern border states. In March, the National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics (Instituto Nacional de Estadística y Geografía or INEGI) released the results of the survey of population and housing which it conducted in 2010.
The census included a new question to identify the number of empty homes, which found that the northern border states had the highest rates of abandoned homes in the country. Tamaulipas and Chihuahua, the states most intensely affected by violence in 2010, respectively had 211,000 and 230,000 abandoned homes. The average occupancy of four people per household provided by INEGI suggests that over 800,000 people have abandoned homes in each of these states. While the census does not provide information on why people abandoned their homes, INEGI has stated that widespread violence would account for the findings.
Beyond the number of empty homes, census population figures also offer a first glimpse into displacement in small localities notably affected by violence. Praxedis G. Guerrero in Chihuahua, for instance, with roughly 8,000 inhabitants recorded in 2000, had only 4,000 in 2010. El Porvenir had 890 inhabitants in 2000 but only 250 in 2010.
See also: IDMC Mexico country page
