****************************************************************************** This document has been posted online by the Division for the Advancement of Women, DESA. Reproduction and dissemination of the document - in electronic and/or printed format - is encouraged, provided acknowledgement is made of the role of the United Nations in making it available. It was not possible to reproduced the tables in Annexes 1 to 8 at this time, these can be obtained by contacting the Division for the Advancement of Women directly. ****************************************************************************** CEDAW/C/MEX/3-4 - Part 2 247. Another of the activities carried out recently with very satisfactory results has been the Comprehensive Quality and Modernization Programme (CIMO), through which attention is paid to groups of women. One example is the support in training materials given to the Association of Mexican Businesswomen (ADEM), a private non-profit institution. Through participatory work, approximately 100 businesswomen from a little over 50 micro-enterprises were given training in 1995 and 1996. Institutional activities and commitments 248. At the institutional level, there have been many efforts of various kinds to contribute to the integration of women into productive activities and the benefits of development on a basis of equality. There is, however, still much to be done; economic and social developments have had such repercussions that many groups of women still find themselves excluded from those benefits. In view of this situation, the federal executive branch has included in the National Development Plan 1995-2000 an element which is of particular importance to the attainment of social development: the goal of strengthening the family and improving the status of women. 249. This objective is supported by the National Programme for Women, 1995-2000 (PRONAM), which aims to promote the formulation, organization, coordination and implementation of measures aimed at expanding and intensifying the participation of women in the development process on a basis of equality of opportunity with men. 250. In the matter of employment, PRONAM has established the following as its objectives: to facilitate the access of women to employment opportunities and to guarantee respect for their labour rights, by promoting the improvement of their working conditions, expanding their employment alternatives, and adapting their training to the needs of their development as working women. 251. In this context, the labour sector plays a supremely important role, particularly when it is recognized that, in order to correct the inequalities between men and women in educational and employment opportunities, it is essential to reinforce the special training and employment social security programmes in such a way that women will have access to jobs that are more productive and better paid and offer appropriate social security services. 252. Thus, PRONAM has established as its primary objective the execution of projects dealing with the following aspects: - Attention to the educational and training needs of women - Protection and promotion of the labour rights of women - Social security - Training and productivity - Research and the compilation of statistics relating to the employment of women - The fight against poverty 253. These projects reflect the continuing commitment of the labour sector to participation in inter-agency programmes and in the determination and application of policies designed to ensure the full participation of women in the country's economic and social development. 254. Each of these projects represents the continuation of the various efforts undertaken recently to strengthen the training programmes for both the unemployed and the actively employed labour force. 255. Moreover, the National Employment Service has been reinforced so that it can more effectively carry out the functions of mediating in the labour market, monitoring vacant posts and channelling requests for employment, with the result that it has been possible to place women in jobs. 256. A project to provide training to improve health has been organized jointly with institutions in the health sector. This project includes measures targeting mainly women between 16 and 65 years of age living in rural communities or poor urban districts, to provide them with basic health services. 257. In order to promote the study of the problems of women and to help to determine their participation in the labour market, gender-disaggregated statistics have been compiled through inter-agency cooperation with the National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics (INEGI), on the basis of the National Employment Survey and its training module and the National Micro-enterprise Survey. Moreover, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, jointly with the College of the Northern Frontier (COLEF), has carried out a survey of migration on the northern frontier of Mexico. The results of both surveys have been disseminated extensively, both in academic circles and among agencies. 258. In addition, encouragement has been given to the carrying out of studies on the participation of women and to activities to monitor the exercise of labour rights without distinction as to sex and the application of the legislation and secondary legislation relating to safety and hygiene and social security have been promoted. 259. At the same time, specific continuing research activities have been undertaken. At the present time, three research projects are in progress on the following topics: the working conditions of women in rural areas; the labour rights of women; and an analysis of discrimination in matters relating to employment and earnings against women in various economic activities. Through the latter two projects, it is hoped that it will be possible to identify those areas where discriminatory situations persist and to evaluate the possibility of organizing measures to eradicate them. 260. At the same time, various measures are being evaluated for their impact on the expansion of opportunities for women in the labour market, as well as the current situation with regard to child-care services, coverage, the characteristics of the services, and alternatives suited to the needs of women workers. 261. The results obtained from the measures and studies which have been undertaken will help to improve the opportunities and conditions for women in the employment sector and will contribute to the full integration of women into productive life. ARTICLE 12 262. As indicated in the first periodic report of Mexico, the principle of the protection and care of the health of the population, both male and female, is embodied in article 4 of the Political Constitution of Mexico. 263. In that connection, it is important to point out that during periods of economic crisis the social spending policy had a marked effect on the quality and extent of public health services available to a large proportion of the country's low-income population. 264. In 1991, the proportion of the total population not covered by or not formally enrolled with one of the public health institutions was 15 per cent. At the present time, one of the most important challenges in the health sector is to ensure full coverage, principally of the marginalized and vulnerable groups numbering approximately 10 million inhabitants. 11/ 265. Through various forums, information has been disseminated on the very important role played by women in matters of health and on the importance of the health of women since women are fundamental to the process of educating the family and the community. 266. Between 1984 and 1988, in accordance with the Five-year Regional Plan of Action for Women in Health and Development introduced in several States members of the Pan-American Health Organization, the National Women and Health Programme (PROMUSA) was implemented. From 1989 to 1994 it was transformed into the Women, Health and Development Programme and since 1991 it has comprised four projects: "Migrant indigenous women", "Health of women prostitutes", "Women in prison and their health" and "Care for the victims of domestic violence". In 1995, the Ministry of Health once again instituted the Women, Health and Development Programme. 267. With a view specifically to meeting the needs of women with regard to their reproductive function, the Reproductive Health and Family Planning Programme 1995-2000 12/ was designed. The Programme is based on a holistic concept which views health as the general state of physical, mental and social well-being in all aspects related to the reproductive system, its functions and its processes. 268. One of the particularly relevant components of the Programme is the incorporation of the gender perspective in all activities relating to the setting of standards, education and communication, the provision of services, and research and evaluation in matters concerning reproductive health with a view to ensuring equitable relations between the sexes and equality of opportunity in order to contribute to the emancipation and protection of the rights of women, particularly their sexual and reproductive rights. 269. The implementation of the Programme is linked to the process of the decentralization of the health services and it is supplemented by the new health care model for those who have not had access to health services, which guarantees a greater number of Mexicans access to timely information and quality services. In order to ensure coverage, a basic health services package has been designed consisting of a combination of essential health services to which every person is entitled, reproductive health being an essential component, together with preventive medicine and nutrition. 270. The objectives of the Reproductive Health and Family Planning Programme include: - To promote the participation of women in employment and politics in order to raise their level of education and information, especially information relating to sexuality and reproduction. - To reduce the number of unwanted, unplanned or high-risk births, thereby contributing to the prevention of abortion and a decline in maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality. - To strengthen the family structure, fostering a responsible attitude among men and women towards sexuality and reproduction. - To encourage the active participation of men in family planning and their co-responsibility in sexual and reproductive decisions. - To prevent unwanted pregnancies, abortion and sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/AIDS, among the adolescent population and to promote the use of condoms. - To provide information and high-quality services for pregnant adolescent girls, with an emphasis on counselling and post-coital birth control. - To guarantee the right of women to appropriate information and quality services on perinatal health, including the encouragement of maternal nutrition and prenatal monitoring with an emphasis on high-risk pregnancies, the prevention of sexually transmitted diseases including HIV/AIDS, the handling of complications of abortion as well as adequate care during confinement, access to emergency obstetrical services, care during the post-natal period, guidance and counselling in post-coital birth control with full respect for reproductive rights, care of the newborn child and full breast-feeding. The primary goal in the area of perinatal health in the comprehensive reproductive health context is to achieve risk-free maternity among the population. - In matters relating to comprehensive reproductive health, to cooperate with the regulatory bodies in the prevention, early detection and reporting of cases of cancer of the cervix and uterus and breast cancer, with an emphasis on primary care in rural areas. - To improve the health of women in the post-reproductive stage. 271. As a result of the advances in medical science and technology and the institutionalization of public health and social security services, life expectancy at birth has increased steadily in recent years, for both men and women. Since 1930, there has been a steady decline in mortality levels in Mexico and this has led to a significant increase in life expectancy at birth for both men and women, although to different degrees. 272. This indicator shows a significant gender difference since it is higher among women than among men. In 1930, men had a life expectancy of 35 years and women of 37 years; in 1990, the life expectancy had risen to 66.45 and 73.08 respectively, and in 1994 to 69.4 and 75.8 respectively. In other words, between 1930 and 1994 this indicator practically doubled. LIFE EXPECTANCY 1990 AND 1994 NATIONAL LIFE EXPECTANCY 1990 1994 MEN WOMEN MEN WOMEN 66.5 73.08 69.4 75.8 Rate per 1,000 inhabitants. SOURCE: SSA/DGEI; VITAL STATISTICS, 1990 AND 1994. 273. The female morbidity rate has not been calculated at the national level, only the hospital morbidity rate in units of institutions which form part of the National Health System (SNS). Information on this subject is available only for the years 1991, when the rate was 260.49, and 1994, when it was 314.71. 274. In 1994, the 10 principal causes of female morbidity in hospitals of the National Health System were: normal births; conditions directly related to obstetrical causes; abortions; traumatism and poisoning; circulatory diseases; urinary diseases; malignant tumours; diabetes mellitus; diseases of the osteo-muscular system and of the connective tissue; and abdominal hernias. THE 10 PRINCIPAL CAUSES OF FEMALE MORBIDITY IN HOSPITALS NATIONAL HEALTH SYSTEM 1994 CAUSE NUMBER 1 NORMAL BIRTHS 788,934 2 OBSTETRICAL CONDITIONS 615,726 3 ABORTIONS 139,109 4 TRAUMATISM AND POISONING 88,541 5 CIRCULATORY DISEASES 79,146 6 URINARY DISEASES 78,297 7 MALIGNANT TUMOURS 51,676 8 DIABETES MELLITUS 50,987 9 DISEASES OF THE OSTEO-MUSCULAR SYSTEM AND OF 45,812 THE CONNECTIVE TISSUE 10 ABDOMINAL HERNIAS 41,990 SOURCE: SNS, Boleti'n de Informacio'n Estadi'ca No.14, 1994. 275. The decline in mortality rates in Mexico varies. The risk of dying differs according to sex and age group. In 1990, there was a total of 422,803 deaths, of which 182,696 were of women, while in 1994, the figures were 419,074 and 181,136 respectively. In those years, the mortality rate among women was almost the same, corresponding to 43.21 per cent and 43.22 per cent respectively. 276. In 1990, the national mortality rate among men was 6 per thousand, while among women it was 4.4 per thousand. In 1994, this indicator declined to 5.3 and 3.8 per thousand respectively. MORTALITY RATES BY SEX 1990 AND 1994 1990 1994 MEN WOMEN MEN WOMEN 6.0 4.4 5.3 3.8 Rate per 1,000 inhabitants. SOURCE: SSA/DGEI; VITAL STATISTICS, 1990 AND 1994. 277. In 1994, the 10 principal causes of female mortality were, in order of importance: diabetes mellitus; acute heart attacks; pneumonia; certain conditions originating in the perinatal period; nutritional deficiencies; nephritis, nephritic syndrome and kidney diseases; cirrhosis and other chronic diseases of the liver; congenital anomalies; malignant tumours of the cervix; and undefined intestinal infections. 278. An analysis of the causes of female mortality by age group shows that malignant tumours, including breast tumours and tumours of the cervix and uterus, are the cause of almost half the deaths among women between 15 and 64 years of age. In 1994, barely one in four women of child-bearing age had had a PAP test (the figure was only 17 per cent in rural localities). 279. With regard to infant mortality during the period 1988-1994, there was a decline both in the number of deaths and in the rate itself. In 1988, there were 61,803 infant deaths with a rate of 23.6 per 1,000 live births registered, while in 1994, the figure had declined to 49,305, with a rate of 17.0; that represented a decrease of 20.2 per cent and 28 per cent respectively. Infant mortality among girls along fell from 19.9 per cent to 6.3 per cent during the same period. TOTAL AND FEMALE INFANT MORTALITY 1988-1994 YEAR MORTALITY TOTAL FEMALE NUMBER RATE NUMBER RATE 1988 61,803 23.6 26,450 20.5 1989 67,315 25.7 29,070 22.5 1990 65,497 23.9 28,399 20.9 1991 57,091 20.7 24,650 18.0 1992 52,502 18.8 22,692 16.4 1993 49,631 17.5 21,577 15.3 1994 49,305 17.0 21,192 19.2 Rate per 1,000 live births registered SOURCE: SSA/DGEI; VITAL STATISTICS, 1988 TO 1994 280. In 1995, the infant mortality rate showed a slight increase to 17.46 per thousand live births registered, despite the fact that the number of deaths declined to 48,023. That year the principal causes of death were: certain conditions originating in the perinatal period, congenital anomalies, influenza and pneumonia, infectious intestinal diseases and nutritional deficiencies. THE 20 PRINCIPAL CAUSES OF INFANT MORTALITY 1995 Order CAUSE CIE KEY DEATHS RATE 1 Conditions originating in the 45 20503 7.454 perinatal period 2 Congenital anomalies 44 7383 2.684 3 Influenza and pneumonia 321,322 5975 2.172 4 Infectious intestinal 01 3500 1.273 diseases 5 Nutritional deficiencies 19 1463 0.532 6 Accidents E47-E53 1265 0.460 7 Acute respiratory infections 310-312,320 980 0.356 Septicaemia 8 Chronic and unspecified 038 710 0.258 9 bronchitis, emphysema and 323 603 0.219 asthma Heart diseases 10 Meningitis 25-28 361 0.131 11 Nephritis, nephritic syndrome 220 270 0.098 12 and kidney diseases 350 248 0.090 Anaemia Homicide and injuries 13 inflicted intentionally by 200 217 0.079 14 another person E55 140 0.051 Intestinal obstruction other than hernias 15 Cerebro-vascular diseases 344 111 0.040 Malignant tumours 16 Abdominal hernias 29 108 0.039 Pneumoconiosis and other 17 pulmonary diseases caused by 08-14 81 0.029 18 external agents 343 66 0.024 19 Epilepsy 326 62 0.023 Cardiac arrhythmia Inadequately defined signs, 20 symptoms and conditions of 225 58 0.21 diseases All other causes 281 229 0.83 046 1202 0.437 TOTAL 2488 0.905 01-E56 48023 17.46 Rate per 1,000 live births registered. 281. The decline in maternal mortality has played an important role in increasing life expectancy among women. In the past two decades, a significant decline in maternal mortality can be observed, although in 1994 and 1995 both the number and the rate increased, probably as a result of better registration. Despite this decline, mortality associated with the perinatal stage is still high, although the great majority of its causes could be foreseen with good antenatal care. 282. In 1995, 1,454 maternal deaths were recorded, which represented a rate of 5.3 per 10,000 live births registered. The principal causes of maternal mortality that year were: toxaemia during pregnancy, haemorrhages during pregnancy or confinement and puerperal complications. There is no register of illegally induced abortions. CAUSES OF MATERNAL MORTALITY 1995 CAUSE DEATHS RATE ABORTIONS 117 0.4 - Spontaneous 8 0.0 - Illegally induced 2 0.0 - Other 107 0.4 DIRECT OBSTETRICAL CAUSES 1,265 4.6 - Haemorrhages during pregnancy or 343 1.2 confinement - Toxaemia during pregnancy 411 1.5 - Genito-urinary infections 14 0.1 during pregnancy - Obstructed births 14 0.1 - Puerperal complications 169 0.6 - Other 314 1.1 INDIRECT OBSTETRICAL CAUSES 72 0.3 TOTAL 1,454 5.3 Rate per 10,000 live births registered. 283. The decline in the risk of death during pregnancy, confinement or the post-natal period is the result of measures taken by the public health institutions in the field of perinatal care and family planning; an intensive public information, consciousness-raising and training campaign on the problem has been promoted in all health institutions under the direction of the National Committee for Risk-free Maternity and with the collaboration of governmental and non-governmental agencies. 284. The official Mexican standards on maternal and child health and family planning were recently revised and updated and activities have also been undertaken to promote health care for women, for example the use of the "Expectant mother's card" which promotes and facilitates greater involvement by the woman herself, and the creation of antenatal care clinics in which maternal and child health nurses participate. 285. Training has also been provided for midwives operating in scattered rural localities in order to ensure better links between community health agents and institutional services. 286. There is currently a National Committee for the Study of Maternal and Perinatal Mortality, as well as equivalent committees in each federal entity, which provide epidemiological and operative care. 287. Antenatal care is one of the central concerns of the reproductive health services, since the risk factors which endanger the health of the mother and child can be identified and controlled during that period. 288. Between 1987 and 1994, the proportion of women receiving antenatal medical care during pregnancy rose from 63.3 to 85.3 per cent. 289. The results of various surveys carried out in Mexico show that antenatal care coverage by a health agent has increased significantly in recent years. According to the National Family Planning Survey (ENPF) carried out by the National Population Council (CONAPO) in 1995, medical personnel participated in the care of 86.1 per cent of the total number of pregnancies occurring during the period 1993-1995, a percentage which has increased by more than half in the past 20 years. However, 6.7 per cent of the total number of women still receive no antenatal care, although this indicator has declined significantly. 290. The Reproductive Health and Family Planning Programme 1995-2000 emphasizes that care during childbirth must be provided in hygienic conditions and by trained personnel. In that connection, the results of ENPF indicate that 68.5 per cent of births occurring during the period 1993-1995 were attended in an institution in the public sector, 20 per cent in a unit in the private sector and 11.5 per cent at the home of the mother or the midwife. Although the percentage of attended births occurred in relatively unfavourable conditions has declined, it is essential to intensify activities to train community personnel and traditional midwives in hygienic delivery and in referring women with high-risk pregnancies. (Tables). 291. According to the Bulletin of Statistical Information of the National Health System, the average number of days women giving birth remained in health centres in 1991 was 1.03. In 1994, it was 1.2. 292. Currently, women attended for a natural birth stay in health centres for an average of two days. This can vary in cases where there has been a Caeserean section, which requires increased care; the length of time in hospital is then an average of four to five days, and this has not changed. 293. Women's exposure to health risks associated with pregnancy has been reduced substantially in Mexico as fertility has declined. The overall fertility rate in 1970 was 6.6 children per women and declined to 2.8 children by the end of 1995, according to ENPF. It is important to point out that, if the rate of growth observed in 1970 had been maintained, the total population of the country would now be over 106 million inhabitants instead of a little over 91 million as indicated in the 1995 Population and Housing Census. 294. The decline in the fertility rate, however, varies markedly depending on the federal entity. In 1995, States such as Chiapas, Puebla, Oaxaca and Zacatecas showed a fertility rate of 3.30 live children per woman, in other words more than one child more than in the federal entities of the Federal District, Nuevo Leo'n and Baja California, which had fewer than 2.30 children per woman. FEDERAL ENTITY AVERAGE 1987-1991 1995 Aguascalientes 3.66 2.92 Baja California 3.10 2.28 Baja California Sur 2.91 2.45 Campeche 3.76 2.91 Coahuila 3.11 2.56 Colima 3.01 2.59 Chiapas 4.60 3.68 Chihuahua 3.19 2.55 Federal District 2.15 2.19 Durango 4.05 3.07 Guanajuato 3.89 3.03 Guerrero 4.47 3.16 Hidalgo 3.48 2.94 Jalisco 3.88 3.11 Me'xico 3.41 2.73 Michoaca'n 4.23 3.06 Morelos 3.03 2.57 Nayarit 3.68 2.91 Nuevo Leo'n 2.54 2.24 Oaxaca 4.56 3.42 Puebla 4.33 3.44 Quere'taro 4.14 3.23 Quintana Roo 3.70 2.65 San Luis Potosi' 4.08 3.29 Sinaloa 3.17 2.60 Sonora 2.89 2.46 Tabasco 3.44 2.84 Tamaulipas 2.80 2.41 Tlaxcala 3.89 3.06 Veracruz 3.23 2.67 Yucata'n 3.77 2.95 Zacatecas 4.30 3.38 National 3.46 2.80 SOURCE: ENADID-1992, ENPF-1995. 295. The decline in fertility is closely linked to the contraceptive methods coverage of women of child-bearing age in a relationship, which has increased significantly - more than doubled - in Mexico in the past 20 years, mainly as a result of the increased availability of services and the training of health personnel through the Family Planning Programme. Thus, while in 1976 30.2 per cent of women of child-bearing age who were married or in a relationship practised birth control, the percentage rose to 63.1 in 1976 and to 66.5 in 1995. 13/ 296. There is still, however, a high unmet demand for contraceptive methods, especially among women belonging to rural and marginal urban groups. 297. In 1987, 61.5 per cent of women of child-bearing age living in urban areas used a contraceptive method, a percentage which increased to 71.3 in 1995. On the other hand, in rural areas, usage was 32.5 per cent in 1987 and rose to 52.7 per cent in 1995. PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN IN A RELATIONSHIP USING CONTRACEPTIVES BY FEDERAL ENTITY, ACCORDING TO PLACE OF RESIDENCE, 1995 FEDERAL ENTITY RURAL URBAN TOTAL Chiapas 44.2 60.0 51.1 Guanajuato 52.2 72.2 66.0 Guerrero 38.9 65.3 54.1 Hidalgo 56.6 63.3 59.7 Me'xico 62.8 76.4 74.5 Michoaca'n 57.8 58.2 58.1 Oaxaca 37.3 61.6 48.3 Puebla 37.2 68.2 57.6 Veracruz 54.4 78.4 68.8 National 52.7 71.3 66.5 Source: ENPF-1995. 298. The percentage of those using contraceptives has increased in all age groups. Among women 25 to 39 years of age, coverage is higher than that observed at the national level (66.5 per cent), above all in the 35 to 39- year age group in which the indicator was as high as approximately 80 per cent. Among adolescents in a relationship, however, only 36.1 per cent practised birth control. 299. In Mexico, the contraceptive method most used by the female population is that of birth-control pills, followed by condoms, contraceptive suppositories and foams, and the rhythm method or abstention. Intrauterine devices, contraceptive injections, tubal ligation and salpingectomy are also used. None of the methods can be applied without the consent of the woman. 300. Rather than regulating those methods, the Act deals with them in the chapter on family planning of the Regulations relating to the General Population Act, article 14 of which states: "For the purposes of these Regulations, family planning, within the meaning of article 4 of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, is the exercise of the right of every person to decide freely, responsibly and in an informed manner on the number and spacing of his or her children and to obtain information and appropriate services." 301. One cause of concern is adolescent pregnancy, which results in unwanted children born to immature mothers who are unaware of the responsibilities of motherhood, abortions performed on adolescents who are ignorant of the physical and psychological consequences involved, malnourished and low-weight babies whose life expectancy is consequently minimal and - if they survive - underdeveloped children of limited human capacity. 302. The reasons why adolescent girls become exposed to the risk of pregnancy stem from a variety of factors such as promiscuity, overcrowding, loss of parental authority, abandonment, inexperience in gauging the risk, peer pressure and imitation of the behavioural patterns of "modern" society, which frequently includes other harmful conduct such as alcohol and drug abuse. Further factors are inadequate sex education and information, as well as other aspects that vary according to the social environment in which the young people develop. 303. The problem is exacerbated in the case of teenage girls who come from poor social and economic backgrounds, since such girls are caught in a vicious circle of poverty and cultural deprivation, which increases their personal insecurity and diminishes their prospects for social and economic betterment. 304. The problem of adolescent or early pregnancy is harming the populations not only of developing countries but also of the most developed countries. Although the view exists that the early commencement of sexual activity is directly linked to the cultural and economic environment, the increase in teenage pregnancies in many countries justifies the need for the problem to be discussed and studied further, with emphasis on the influence exerted by advances made in the mass media. 305. With regard to the biophysiological risks, adolescent pregnancies appear to increase the likelihood of complications, including toxaemia, anaemia, haemorrhaging, cephalo-pelvic disproportion, premature births and protracted labour. 306. As regards the psychological aspects, adolescent pregnancies are a cause of stress, since teenage mothers are more vulnerable because of their immaturity; they tend to suffer loneliness and to feel trapped as they face their future; they lose their self-esteem and are overwhelmed by the uncertainty of being able to cope with motherhood. It has also been observed that the children of teenage mothers figure among the population sector that runs a high risk of physical abuse, neglect, malnutrition and retarded development; such children subsequently develop school-related problems and ultimately turn to juvenile delinquency. In short, the outward manifestations of their rejection at birth can be seen. 307. Pregnancies among these age groups are in some cases intentional, the mother wishing to receive care and attention. However, surveys carried out have shown that approximately 70 per cent of premarital pregnancies among adolescents are not intended. 308. One important consequence of unwanted pregnancies is the incidence of induced abortions. In Mexico, abortion is not recognized as a method of family planning and its practice is regarded as endangering the woman's health. 309. Abortion is the fifth cause of maternal mortality in Mexico, although in recent years both the number of deaths and the mortality rate from abortions has declined. Whereas in 1987 146 deaths from abortions were registered, with a rate of 5.2 per 10,000, in 1994 the number declined to 95 deaths, with a rate of 3.3. This means a decline of 34.9 and 36.5 per cent respectively. 310. There is evidence that the incidence of induced abortions has declined, mainly as a result of women's greater access to modern contraceptive methods which meet their reproductive expectations. There are, however, still sectors of women who have no access to family planning and reproductive health and for whom greater efforts must be made to prevent unwanted pregnancies and, consequently, to reduce induced abortions, particularly among adolescents. 311. In order to strengthen family planning services, the health sector has initiated measures designed to reinforce and expand the range of contraceptive methods offered by health institutions to young and underpriveleged women. Moreover, the creation of a single administrative unit responsible for the planning and supervision of maternal and child care and family planning services represents an important step towards the establishment of a reproductive health approach. 312. One public health problem on the rise is HIV/AIDS, which, although it affects a larger number of men, 14/ constitutes an important aspect in the analysis and care of women's health. For this reason, at the time of presentation of the first periodic report to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) it was stated, in reply to one of the questions raised by the Committee's experts, that the Government of Mexico had been pursuing a variety of measures to prevent and deal with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) since 1986, when it had established the National Committee for AIDS Prevention, which was subsequently transformed into the National Council for AIDS Prevention and Control (CONASIDA). 313. In Mexico, the reporting of cases began in 1983 and, by early 1996, a total of 22,539 cases had been recorded. The most recent figure has risen to about 29,207, with an incidence of 3,797 cases, or 13 per cent of the total, among women. It is believed, however, that not all cases are registered and that there is some late reporting, and that there are a little over 38,000 cases. 314. Given the period of incubation of HIV, information of cases of AIDS indicates that the transmission of the disease occurred five or ten years earlier. With the data available, it is important to point out that at the beginning of the epidemic there was one case among women for every 25 cases among men, but in April 1996 there was one case among women for every six cases among men. CUMULATIVE CASES OF AIDS AMONG MEN AND WOMEN BY AGE GROUP UP TO APRIL 1996 AGE MEN WOMEN TOTAL 1 110 74 184 1-4 125 90 215 5-14 175 69 244 15-24 2,315 471 2,786 25-34 8,203 1,152 9,355 35-44 4,989 823 5,812 45-54 2,231 378 2,609 55-64 874 142 1,016 65 and over 264 54 318 TOTAL 19,286 3,253 22,539 SOURCE: CONASIDA, SIDA-ETS, 1996. 315. Up to 1986, blood transfusions were the main source of HIV transmission to Mexican women. 15/ At the present time, the most frequent method is sexual transmission. 16/ Unlike in other countries, where the virus is transmitted through intravenous drug use with a high incidence among women, the rate of infection by such means is extremely low in Mexico. 316. In order to deal with this problem, the Government has taken steps to train and arouse the awareness of health personnel and of those involved in providing social counselling and guidance in this area. 317. The General Health Act requires the launching of campaigns to control and eradicate transmissible diseases which present a real or potential problem for the general health of the community and, in article 136, makes it mandatory that the health authority should be informed of cases of infectious diseases, including AIDS. The relevant articles of the Act were also amended to make HIV testing compulsory in the case of all blood transfusions and to ban the sale of blood plasma. 318. The magnitude of the problem led to the establishment, in September 1990, of the first centre for the detection of the acquired immunodeficiency virus and sexually transmitted diseases, especially among women. 319. Continuing campaigns are waged in the electronic and mass communication media, directed at the entire population, with a view to preventing this disease and informing the population that persons afflicted with it may live with others without any danger of contagion. 320. CONASIDA is an agency which has the task of promoting, supporting and coordinating the measures taken in the public, private and social sectors to combat AIDS and liaising with institutions that work to control AIDS. In particular, CONASIDA promotes and organizes the dissemination of information on AIDS prevention and treatment as part of the health education programme. In this way, those who have questions on the subject, mainly young people, can come to CONASIDA, or telephone using a special line set up for this purpose called TELSIDA. 321. CONASIDA provides psychotherapeutic services for those suffering from this disease. It offers them the tools necessary to optimize their quality of life, transforming them into active agents of prevention and making a thorough assessment of their ability to fit into society. It also provides them with support in the form of social services, advice on human rights, referral to institutions, nutritional guidance, psychological support for both patients and their families and others close to them, providing company for terminal patients and maintenance for their families and home care visits, as well as assistance with funeral and administrative arrangements. 322. These same activities are carried out by governmental organizations which have emerged from the community, among which mention might be made of the following: Fundacio'n Mexicana de Lucha contra el SIDA (Mexican Foundation to Combat AIDS), Asociacio'n Mexicana de Servicios Asistenciales en VIH/SIDA I.A.P. (Mexican Association of Social Security Services for HIV/AIDS), Arbol de la Vida (Tree of Life), Enfermos en Superacio'n (Overcoming disease), Ser Humano (Human Being), Grupo "Padrinos" ("Godparents" Group), Fundacio'n Francisco Estrada Valle (Francisco Estrada Valle Foundation), Mujeres por la Salud en accio'n contra el SIDA, A.C. (Women for Health to combat AIDS), Organizacio'n de Atencio'n Integral en SIDA (Comprehensive AIDS Care Organization) and Salud Integral para la Mujer, A.C. (Comprehensive Women's Health), among many others. 323. As has been mentioned, cancer of the cervix and uterus and breast cancer are two of the main causes of mortality among women between 15 and 64 years of age. In fact, both causes combined currently account for approximately 5 per cent of deaths among women 15 years of age and over. In Mexico, the mortality rate for breast cancer has increased since 1980, rising from a rate of 1.8 per 100,000 in 1980 to 3.1 per 100,000 women in 1994. As for cancer of the cervix and uterus, the rate reached its highest point in 1988 and 1989 and then showed a slight tendency to decline in the 1990s. 324. In addition to the programmes and activities mentioned, it should be pointed out that the Ministry of Health has established programmes such as the Early Antenatal Monitoring Programme, directed at both the urban and rural female population; the Programme on Information, Prevention and Early Treatment of Tumours of the Breast, Cervix and Uterus; and the AIDS Information, Education, Prevention and Care Programme. 325. Another programme which is being carried out is the "Friend of the Child and the Mother Hospital" Programme, which, inter alia, offers family planning measures, antenatal care, promotion and support of breast-feeding, strengthening of the mother during the post-natal period, and measures for the early detection of cancer of the breast, cervix and uterus. 326. The health sector is also implementing programmes for the care of adolescent mothers and has launched a reproductive health programme directed specifically at the young population. The non-governmental organizations, in their turn, have carried out comprehensive sexual education activities among young people and have taken steps to train teachers in the educational system. 327. In order to offer counselling services and background on aspects of reproductive health, sexuality, mental health and family and interpersonal relationships, a telephone line has been set up for young people in Mexico City which operates 24 hours a day. 328. As for older women, the Government is endeavouring to broaden access to social security programmes, medical treatment and other social services, and to encourage the establishment of early detection programmes for diseases occurring among older women and promote nutritional programmes for them. 329. The health sector is carrying out a comprehensive Information, Education and Communication (IEC) strategy covering all educational and promotional activities relating to reproductive health. The IEC strategy is undertaking the following programmes: * Comprehensive reproductive health care for adolescent girls and boys The programme provides information, education and guidance, as well as comprehensive biopsychosocial treatment for adolescents with an emphasis on reproductive health, and is being carried out in the 32 federal entities of the country. * Family planning and comprehensive reproductive health - Family planning counselling Provides adequate and appropriate information so that people can take responsible decisions about their sexuality and reproduction. - Non-surgical vasectomy Promotes the participation of men in family planning programmes. Provides full information about this definitive method. - Care during pregnancy, confinement and the post-natal period by traditional trained midwives. In order to continue to improve the quality of antenatal care in rural areas and reduce maternal mortality, the training of traditional midwives is continuing. During 1995, trained midwives provided perinatal care in 279,335 cases. * Perinatal health - Antenatal monitoring The idea is promoted that all pregnant women should receive medical attention during pregnancy, confinement and the post- natal period with a focus on the risks involved. To that end, efforts are being made to ensure that every pregnant women receives at least five antenatal consultations, in the case of those at low risk, and more in the case of those who require it on account of complications or because they are at high risk. - Care during pregnancy, confinement and the post-natal period by institutional personnel With a view to reducing the risks inherent in these stages of reproductive life, efforts are being made to ensure that women receive care in health units which have the minimum essential resources to reduce maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality and that the care is provided by qualified personnel. - Encouragement of breast-feeding and keeping the baby with the mother In accordance with national policies, in all health units which provide obstetrical and paediatric care, keeping the baby with the mother and breast-feeding are encouraged; the latter is also promoted in first-level units and in the community. - Early detection of mental retardation of metabolic origin It has been proposed that a blood sample should be taken from every child born in hospitals of the National Health System and that the sample should be tested so that mental retardation of metabolic origin (congenital hypothyroidism) can be detected early and corrective medical measures can be taken. - Detection and treatment of cancer of the cervix and uterus and breast cancer Cancer of the cervix and uterus and breast cancer continue to be significant causes of death among Mexican women. This situation calls for a reinforcement of the information and services provided which help to reduce these diseases. Encouragement will be given to the carrying out of Pap tests on all women at risk at least every three years and to the self-examination of breasts in a systematic manner. - Infertility Approximately one third of couples have problems of infertility; there are therefore plans to provide quality services and information from the first level of treatment. - Climacteric As a consequence of the increased life expectancy at birth, a considerable number of women will spend a significant part of their lives in a post-menopausal condition. It is therefore important to identify the risk factors which women face in the post-reproductive phase and to establish measures which would improve their quality of life. * Training activities to provide health information for women During the period 1990-1995, 46 workshops were held on "Guidance and counselling in contraceptive methods and family planning", in which 1,251 service providers from different States in the Republic were given training. The general purpose of these workshops was to provide the necessary knowledge on promotion and counselling to improve the quality of family planning services - all the foregoing - with a specific health message for women, since the workshops dealt with subjects such as sexuality, reproductive health and family planning, contraceptive methods, sexually transmitted diseases and AIDS, interpersonal relationships and the quality of counselling services and guidance, with emphasis on the gender perspective. Six strategic supervisory workshops were also given, directed at the supervisory personnel at different levels in the federal entities. The general purpose of these workshops was to provide those attending with the elements which would enable them to carry out their functions in an optimal manner and thus to check that the training and educational activities were reaching the female population. * Traditional midwives The principal aim of the National Traditional Midwives Programme is to contribute to the decline in maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality by training traditional midwives who are recognized by their community in the treatment of pregnancy, childbirth, the puerperium and the newborn. There are at present approximately 10 million midwives who have received training lasting from two to four weeks. The training includes topics which are of paramount importance for women's health, such as care during pregnancy, nutrition, hygiene, the prevention of tetanus, the detection of cancer of the cervix and uterus and breast cancer, breast-feeding, family planning and the prevention of diarrhoeal and respiratory diseases. Subsequently, in most of the States where the traditional midwives programme is being carried out, training is continuing through periodic meetings at which other topics are reviewed or the topics mentioned above are reinforced, mainly with a view to providing the necessary elements for the midwives to carry out their promotional activities, detect cases at risk and refer them to the health units so that they can receive the treatment they require in a timely manner. * Health attendants of the strategy for the extension of coverage 330. During the period 1990-1995, the Ministry of Health trained various health personnel in rural areas in different courses. These courses were given in order to provide the health attendants and traditional midwives with technical information concerning family planning, the treatment of pregnancy, confinement and the post-natal period and the care of the newborn and of those under five years of age, with a view to promoting the health of the maternal and child population and of scattered rural communities with a population of fewer than 2,500 inhabitants. During the above-mentioned period, a total of 4,498 health attendants from as many communities were trained. 331. As far as family planning is concerned, article 16 of the regulations relating to the General Population Act states that: "Family planning services must be integrated and coordinated with health, education, social security and public information and other services designed to ensure the well-being of individuals and of the family". 332. Article 17 also states: "Information and health, education and other services relating to family planning programmes shall be free of charge when they are provided by departments and agencies in the public sector". Women with disabilities 333. Although the population suffering from some type of physical, sensory or mental disability in Mexico has been receiving attention for decades, it was not until 1995 that a comprehensive strategy was established with the aim of improving the situation of the disabled Mexican population in such areas as employment, health, education, transport, culture, sports, legal matters, human rights, communication media, and so on. 334. The National Programme for the Well-being and Incorporation into Development of Persons with Disabilities, which was approved by the President of the Republic in May 1995, represents the culmination of efforts by individuals, social organizations, private institutions and government departments with a view to giving unity and coherence to the activities already being carried out throughout the country and developing and expanding other activities deemed necessary. 335. Although the Programme is not directed specifically at women, the many activities undertaken under it benefit women since it is based on equality of opportunity in: 1. Health, well-being and social security 2. Education 3. Labour rehabilitation, training and employment 4. Culture, recreation and sports 5. Accessibility, telecommunications and transport 6. Communications 7. Legislation and human rights 8. National Information System 336. In the various entities of the Republic, similar efforts are being made thanks to the installation of State Commissions, presided over by each of the Governors. The Councils for the Support for Persons with Disabilities bring together or are in contact with the organizations in their respective states. A national network has also been formed; in each state there is a promoter of support for persons with disabilities. 337. Institutionally, the National Commission for the Integration of Persons with Disabilities is responsible for coordinating the efforts of the ministries, the departments and entities of the federal public administration and the state and municipal governments; the organizations for persons with disabilities; the solidarity organizations, the Congress of the Union, the local Congresses and the Assembly of Representatives of the Federal District. The Commission is assisted by the promoters and those appointed for that purpose by the National Scheme for Comprehensive Family Development. 338. The National Programme seeks to promote the social integration of persons with disabilities and their integration into development; to create a new culture of consideration for persons with disabilities and respect for their dignity and social, political, economic, civil and cultural rights. Specifically, it requires the adoption of measures to guarantee persons with disabilities access to employment opportunities and health, education and training services. 339. The principles and general aims of the National Programme are: - To guarantee the dignity and social integration of persons with disabilities. To promote the unity and strength of the family for their benefit and to stimulate the harmonious development of the community and society as a whole in order to offer them opportunities for development. - To provide equal opportunities for persons with disabilities which would lead to their full integration into social, economic, political and cultural development. - To promote a new culture of respect, dignity and integration in relation to persons with disabilities, removing all the physical and mental barriers which still exist. - To regard persons with disabilities as strategic actors in their own development, since their participation is vital to the enrichment of society as a whole. - To regard the unity and strength of the family as the motive power to bring about the harmonious development of the community and of society in general. - To guarantee full respect for human, political and social rights, eliminating all forms of discrimination and exclusion. - To consolidate the role of the State as the leader and prime mover in the social integration of this important population group. - To make institutions, organizations and individuals aware of disabilities and of their co-responsibility in dealing with this problem. 340. Its strategies include the following: - To promote self-sufficiency based on personal overcoming of difficulties and on equality of opportunities for persons with disabilities. - To support the families of persons with disabilities as a first step towards their integration into the life of the community. 341. With regard to health, well-being and social security, the measures being undertaken as part of the National Programme to offer preventive and rehabilitation services during all stages of the life of the population include, inter alia, campaigns to promote prevention from the antenatal stage on, care during pregnancy, vaccination, prevention of accidents, and prevention campaigns in the communication media. These measures have involved the Ministry of Health, the National Scheme for Comprehensive Family Development, the Mexican Social Security Institute, the Government Employee Social Security and Services Institute, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and the Ministry of Communications and Transport. ARTICLE 13 342. Given the legal equality of women and men established by article 4 of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, in Mexico all persons have the right, on a basis of equality, to any type of bank credit. Access to financing is governed by the General Credit Instruments and Operations Act, commercial law in general, and common law according to the regulations established in the Civil Code of the Federal District. 343. Article 3 of the General Credit Instruments and Operations Act states: "All persons who have the legal capacity to enter into contracts, in accordance with the legislation mentioned in the previous article, may carry out the transactions referred to in this Act, with the exception of those which require special authorization or concession." Article 2 of the same Act states: "The acts and transactions referred to in the previous article are governed: I. By the provisions of this Act and of other special relevant legislation; failing that: II. By general commercial legislation; failing that: III. By banking and commercial practice; failing that: IV. By common law, and for this purpose the Civil Code of the Federal District is declared applicable throughout the Republic." 344. In accordance with civil legislation, women have full capacity to inherit, on an equal basis with men. With regard to the property ownership system, a woman has the same right to administer property when she is the designated representative for that purpose; a cultivable plot of land may be part of the family patrimony. As for the joint ownership of property by husband and wife, the administration of the property remains the responsibility of whichever of the spouses may have been designated in the marriage articles; each retains the right to dispose of his or her property unless the property is in joint ownership, in which case the permission of the other spouse is required. 345. It is clear that there is no provision in the applicable legislation which requires the authorization of the husband or the father for a woman to obtain bank loans, mortgages and other forms of financial credit. Government credit programmes 346. In Mexico, women have access to financing not only as a right; it is part of a development strategy. In accordance with the priority goal stipulated in the National Development Plan - which in a section dedicated to social development states that "Mexico's principal challenge is to reduce poverty and alleviate the inequality which exists between different strata of the population" - the Government of Mexico is carrying out various financing programmes to foster the productive capacity of women, especially those who are the most vulnerable - rural women 17/ - and, more recently, has begun to incorporate strategies for financial support specifically for micro-enterprises owned by women. 347. Government efforts are seeking to establish a framework to overcome the decline in the capacity of the business sector resulting from a prolonged period of economic crisis - which reduced the possibilities for the lower-income population to reach higher levels of well-being - in order to help to generate permanent employment. In this connection, the specialized support for low-income businesswomen acquires strategic relevance, as an instrument of the economic and social development strategy of the policy of combating poverty, since experience has shown that businesswomen have a greater awareness and disposition to direct the larger share of their income towards meeting the essential needs of their families; moreover, they show greater responsibility in assuming their contractual commitments and payment obligations. 348. According to the results of the Eleventh National Population and Housing Census, micro-enterprises comprise 97 per cent of the existing economic units in the country, generate 47 per cent of the jobs, and contribute 31 per cent of the national income. Some 30.3 per cent of these productive establishments are managed by or are under the ownership of women, although the percentage might be higher since in various cases the management and ownership of micro-enterprises are registered in the name of fathers or husbands, even when it is the women who run them. 349. In this connection, the programme for the encouragement and support of low-income businesswomen, introduced by Nacional Financiera in March 1997, is directed towards encouraging initiatives and giving practical and programmatic support to micro-enterprises managed by women, from a business development angle. However, the programme does not view credit as the only requirement for the successful operation of micro-enterprises owned by women; it believes it is essential to provide comprehensive support involving various stages: information, technical advice, training, technological support and financing. 350. It is envisaged that approximately 243,000 women's micro-enterprises could participate in the programme, to which various local agents such as state governments and municipalities, bankers and financiers, universities and higher educational institutes, and non-governmental organizations, inter alia, would also contribute. 351. Under another scheme, the National Rural Credit Banking System (BANRURAL) offers financial support for agricultural activities, both in the organized sector (UAIM) and among women owners and ejidatarias (women holding shares in communal land) as individuals who take out loans to finance their smallholdings; other activities supported are the fattening up of livestock and manufactures. During the year 1995, BANRURAL financed productive activities through 451 loans taken out by women. 352. The activities of the agriculture-related trusts established by the Bank of Mexico (FIRA) form part of the National Programme for Women 1995- 2000, which has the primary goal of promoting, within the financial institutions, the development of credit machinery and the channelling of resources to support viable production projects operated and managed by women. 353. As part of the strategies organized by the Federal Government to benefit the rural social sector, FIRA allocates financial resources for rural development and the development of agriculture and livestock raising, agribusiness, forestry and fishing, with subsidized loans for periods of up to 15 years for capital investment. It also grants credit for particular business purposes secured on the equipment or the product (creditos de habilitacio'n o de avi'o), short-term loans and credit on chattel mortgages, mainly in support of the marketing of products. Thus, in 1996, FIRA channelled 2.2 million pesos into agricultural and livestock-raising activities. 354. In addition to the foregoing, FIRA has organized a programme of financing and collateral support for developing producers, which is based on the integration and processing of those receiving credit, to support them with additional services such as the Organization of Producers and Technical Assistance, as well as guarantees of recovery of loans, inter alia, which are all available to specific projects in which rural women participate. In this connection, FIRA promotes closer links with non- governmental organizations concerned with rural development with a view to identifying and modifying the conditions which could be limiting the granting of loans. 355. Moreover, the Trust responsible for the Rural Women's Programme of the Department of Agrarian Reform has made a commitment to grant financing up to a total of 12 million pesos for the establishment and development of evaluated programmes and for the monitoring of the operational progress and the achievements of groups supported prior to 1997. During the period March 1996 to March 1997, this Programme granted financing in the amount of $5,252,122 for 233 projects which generated 5,289 jobs in the States of Campeche, Chiapas, Durango, Guanajuato, Guerrero, Tamaulipas, Tlaxcala, Yucata'n and Zacatecas, in highly and very highly marginalized areas. 356. The Programme also expanded its coverage through the signing of agreements for supplementary resources with the State Governments of Oaxaca and Guerrero and with the National Arid Zone Commission. Agreements are in the process of being signed with the States of Morelos, Chiapas and Yucata'n and with the National Agrarian Development Institute, all of them for the benefit of rural and indigenous women. 357. Along the same lines, the Ministry of Social Development has established a framework for encouraging productive business enterprise projects, through the contribution of investment resources, among social groups living in conditions of poverty, with a view to improving their economic environment. 358. It should be pointed out that a study is in progress on "Credit institutions and systems for women in Mexico", on the initiative of the National Population Council, as part of the measures designed to involve the community in the National Programme for Women, which will indicate whether the credit institutions and systems analysed are useful credit instruments in promoting the economic development of women and of persons living in conditions of poverty. * * * 359. It should, moreover, be noted that there are no discriminatory provisions concerning social and employment benefits for single working mothers. 360. Similarly, women in Mexico have equal rights to participate in all aspects of cultural life and in recreational activities and sports. ARTICLE 14 361. Based on the size of a locality, the population residing therein can be classified as rural or urban. Rural localities are deemed to be those which have fewer than 2,500 inhabitants and, although the percentage of the population living in rural localities has been decreasing, the number of such localities has increased significantly. In 1995, there were 201,138 localities, of which 98.6 per cent (198,311) were rural. 362. The average number of inhabitants per rural locality is 122; this gives an idea of the scattered nature of the rural population since a small percentage of the population is concentrated in a considerable number of localities. In general, it is believed that rural localities are in a more precarious situation than urban localities and that they have fewer facilities and less of an urban infrastructure. 363. The ratio of the rural population to the urban population in Mexico has been decreasing: in 1970, the rural population comprised 41.3 per cent of the population; it comprised 33.7 per cent in 1980 and declined to 28.7 per cent in 1990 and 26.49 per cent in 1995. However, in absolute figures, Mexico's rural population has increased, from a total of 21,640,424 in 1970 to 22,527,382 in 1980, 23,289,924 in 1990 and 24,154,775 in 1995. In 1995, 50.43 per cent of the rural population was male and 49.57 per cent (11,974,434) female. These percentages differ from the percentages for the national population, 50.75 per cent of which was female in 1995. The reason for this difference in the percentages can be found mainly in the migration of rural women to urban areas in search of employment. In this connection, it should be pointed out that in rural areas a slight majority of males can be noted, since in 1995 the sex ratio was 100.70, compared with the national index of 97.10. 364. Distributed heterogeneously throughout the national territory, the entities with a greater percentage of indigenous population in Mexico are Oaxaca (18.74 per cent), Chiapas (14.01 per cent), Veracruz (10.77 per cent), Yucata'n (9.95 per cent), Puebla (9.62 per cent), Hidalgo (5.98 per cent), Guerrero (5.85 per cent) and Mexico State (5.66 per cent). 365. According to the data published by the Advisory Board of the National Solidarity Programme, in 1987 approximately 41.3 million people - 50.9 per cent of the total national population - were living in conditions of poverty or extreme poverty. Of those engaged in agricultural and livestock-raising activities, 80 per cent came from poor households, one half of them in circumstances of extreme poverty. 366. In this context of rural poverty, the indigenous population, migrant workers, smallholders in seasonal zones and inhabitants of desert areas constitute the social groups that are surviving in the worst conditions, and within those groups it is the women and children who are most affected. 367. In 1995, 11.0 per cent of the female employed population was engaged in agriculture. That same year, 31.4 per cent of the male employed population was engaged in that sector. 368. With the crisis of the 1980s, the participation of both sexes in industry declined, but the number of women registered as employed in agriculture increased. Between 1979 and 1995, the percentage of women employed in industry declined from 22.5 to 14.6 per cent, while the percentage registered as employed in agriculture increased from 5.9 to 11.0 per cent. MALE EMPLOYED POPULATION Sector 1979 1995 Agriculture 36.3 31.4 Industry 28.4 16.7 Services - Commerce 34.3 24.6 Total 99.0 100.0 FEMALE EMPLOYED POPULATION Sector 1979 1995 Agriculture 5.9 11.0 Industry 22.5 14.6 Services - Commerce 71.6 69.3 Total 100.0 100.0 369. In Mexico, women are acquiring ever greater importance in agrarian units. Women hold title to 3.2 million hectares, or 15.7 per cent of the total area certified up to 1996 at the national level under the Programme for the Certification of Ejidos (PROCEDE), which will be described below. In 1970, in all the ejidos (communal land) in Mexico, there were 31,459 ejidatarias (women holders of shares), or 1.3 per cent of the total number of ejidatarios (holders of shares). By 1996, this figure had increased 343 per cent, taking into account only the area certified. 370. Women are present in the Mexican countryside in various ways: in some states women have smallholdings, in others they belong to organs of an ejido, and in other entities they are granted land through the system of women's industrial-agricultural units (UAIM). 371. Some 80 per cent of women with land have less than 10 hectares and only a small number (2.8 per cent) have more than 25 hectares. On a national average, ejidatarias have plots of 7.9 hectares, which is 1.1 hectares less than those held by their male counterparts. In each ejido, approximately 32 plots are held by women and 123 by men. 1. Situation of rural women 372. In order to describe the situation of rural women in Mexico, it is important to take into account the diversity of ethnic origins and cultures which come together in the national territory and the inequality of regional development as a result of which the situation and characteristics of rural women present distinct regional special features. 373. The proportion of rural men and women 15 years of age and over who can neither read nor write is 18.5 and 27 per cent respectively, compared with 3.7 and 6.4 per cent for men and women in urban areas with 15,000 or more inhabitants. 374. Women who live in rural localities have a lower life expectancy at birth than urban women (72.8 and 76.8 years respectively). In 1995, at the national level, the average life expectancy for the inhabitants of Mexico was estimated at 72.9 years. The same average for women that year was estimated at 76.1 years. 375. With regard to rural fertility, it is important to mention that it has been linked to population policies implemented through the National Family Planning Programme, which has at present reached almost all women in the country, thus producing a decline in the total rural fertility rate. In 1995, however, states such as Chiapas, Puebla and Oaxaca had a fertility rate of 3.30 live children per woman, in other words one child more than in the federal entities of the Federal District, Nuevo Leo'n and Baja California Sur, where the rate was fewer than 2.30 children per woman. 376. In 1987, the proportion of rural women using contraceptive methods was low compared with the national average; that year the percentage was 61.5 among urban couples and 32.5 among those living in rural areas. Although in 1995 contraceptive use rose to 52.7 per cent, 32 per cent of rural women have never used any method of birth control, while in the cities the figure was 15 per cent. It is also estimated that in various states (such as Puebla, Oaxaca and Guerrero), women who are married or in a relationship and who live in rural localities have levels of contraceptive use of less than 40 per cent. 377. With regard to the health of rural women, it should be mentioned that in 1987 there were six deaths per 1,000 in rural areas. Although there are no current data on rural female mortality, at the national level the rate of female mortality was 4.4 per thousand in 1990. In 1994, this indicator declined to 3.8 per thousand. It should be pointed out that, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Health, 64.8 per cent of maternal deaths in 1991 occurred in rural areas, to a large extent owing to the fact that only 30 per cent of rural women giving birth received attention in health care centres. 378. A woman is head of the household in 8.7 per cent of family households in rural areas, while the figure rises to 14.3 per cent in urban areas. Of the non-family households, 43 per cent in rural areas and 47 per cent in urban areas are headed by a woman. 2. Mexican legal framework 379. Article 27 of the Political Constitution of the United Mexican States, amended by a Decree of 29 July 1992, establishes the various forms in which land and waters are held and the conditions for promoting comprehensive rural development. 380. On 27 February 1992, in keeping with the amendment to article 27 of the Constitution, the New Agrarian Act entered into force. This Act opens up options for the development of the historical constitutional forms of ownership of land - the ejido, the community and the smallholding - to give constitutional approval to the ejido and the community and legal security to the three forms of land-holding. 381. The New Agrarian Act recognizes the equality of men and women in all aspects. 1. It establishes that the internal regulations of an ejido (which must be drawn up by the men and women holding shares therein) shall govern the economic and social organization of the ejido. 2. It recognizes that a woman may obtain credit and has the right to use and have the benefit of the plot of land. 3. A woman has the right to designate successors so that the plot of land can continue as her patrimony. 4. A woman has the right to speak and vote in the assembly of the ejido. 5. A woman has the right to be elected as a member of the administrative board of the ejido or of the supervisory council or of any special commission, and to be assistant secretary. 6. A woman has the right to form part of and/or to be elected to the council of the locality which administers social and urban services such as schools, markets, hospitals and housing. 7. A woman has the right to pledge the use of the plot of land, as a guarantee of payment, only to banks or persons who carry out commercial transactions (this guarantee does not jeopardize the ownership of the plot of land, only its use for a given period of time). 8. A woman has the right to hold title to various plots of land provided that they do not total an area of more than 5 per cent of the land of an ejido or the equivalent of a smallholding. 9. A woman has the right to form, with other men and women holding shares in an ejido, unions and associations for the purpose of improving the use of their plots of land, for the marketing or processing of their products, for the provision of services, or for any other purpose they deem useful. 10. A woman has the right to use the water in her plot of land by making the appropriate payment, and to use the waters on the ejido. 11. A woman has the right to be assigned land for common use. 12. A woman has the right to receive an urban lot free of charge, for which the National Land Registry will send her a title deed which must be entered in the Public Ownership Registry. 13. A woman has the right to have a certificate of smallholding rights sent to her. 14. A woman has the right to receive advice, representation and defence of her rights from the Agrarian Law Office. 15. A woman may acquire rights in an ejido by buying them, using the preferential right if the seller is her husband, father or an ascendant relative. 382. The Agrarian Act of 1992 also recognizes the position of a woman resident of a village with an ejido, such as an adult Mexican woman who has resided for one year or more on land belonging to a population unit, stipulating that she should be recognized as such by the Assembly of the ejido or by the Agrarian Tribunal. 1. The woman resident may become a shareholder in the ejido through being assigned a plot of land. 2. She has the right to be a member of the residents' boards to manage services for the benefit of the community. 3. She has the right to be a member of the Commission of the Community Boards to manage and represent the interests of the community. 4. She has the right to participate in the drawing up of the Regulations of the Community Board. 383. The New Agrarian Act also governs the operation of the system of industrial-agricultural units (UAIM), which is the antecedent of the rural women's organizations and was institutionalized in the 1971 agrarian legislation as an organization of women starting with the ejido. Since 1971, however, the organizational capacity of the UAIMs has not been used to full capacity. At the beginning of the 1990s, 6,300 UAIMs were registered, only 35 per cent of which, according to data compiled by the Ministry of Agrarian Reform, were active. 384. Unlike the Agrarian Act of 1971, the establishment of a UAIM was subject to the discretion of the Assembly of the ejido, as was its expansion, so that it lost its mandatory character of reserving an area equal to the unit of land allotted, in the best land adjacent to the urbanization zone, for the establishment of an agricultural and livestock- raising farm and rural industries operated collectively by the women of the agrarian unit over 16 years of age who were not holders of land in the ejido. 385. Moreover, the Agrarian Act of 1992 contains specific provisions referring to the regime of succession, including provisions relating to women. Article 17 of the Act establishes the capacity of a holder of land in an ejido to designate successors without mentioning as mandatory the right, in the first place, of the spouse (wife) and the common-law wife to be designated successors to the plot of land of the ejido, unlike the Agrarian Act of 1971. Only article 18 of the New Agrarian Act determines an order of preference to be applied to the transfer, as mandatory, but when an ejidatario dies without having designated a successor, it explicitly mentions the wife or common-law wife. 3. Government programmes 386. In addition to the UAIM, other government programmes have been developed, including the Programme of Action for the Participation of Rural Women in the Attainment of Rural Development, the Programme of Support for Rural Women's Production Projects, and the Programme of Community Development with the Participation of Women. More recently, other attempts have been made in an effort to help to increase the well-being of rural women, such as the Women in Solidarity Programme, the National Solidarity Enterprises Support Fund and the Rural Provisions Programme. 387. In an inter-agency effort led by the Executive Coordination Office of PRONAM, since December 1996, two working meetings have been held on policies and programmes in the public sector to assist rural women in Mexico, in keeping with PRONAM, which establishes priority measures towards that end, many of which include the goals of: - Guaranteeing the rights of rural and indigenous women to hold title to and to have the use of land and to be given loans, irrespective of their civil status; - Strengthening the UAIMs; - Promoting the participation of women in rural development through training and extension programmes which take into account problems relating to gender. 388. The following participated in both meetings: the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock Raising and Rural Development, the Ministry of Agrarian Reform, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of the Environment, Natural Resources and Fisheries, and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as well as the National Population Council, the National Institute for Indigenous Peoples, the National Migration Institute of the Ministry of the Interior, the National Scheme for Comprehensive Family Development (DIF), the Federal Consumers' Law Office, the Mexican Institute of Social Security, the National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics, and various institutions in the agrarian sector. 389. The purpose of these meetings was to establish joint commitments incorporating the gender perspective, with a view to linking the activities of each agency targeting rural women, which covered, inter alia, such diverse sectors as education, health, employment, financing, sustainable development, legal advice and the family. 390. Since policies and programmes which directly or indirectly benefit rural women have been mentioned in other chapters of this report, only some of the programmes which specifically target rural women will be mentioned below. Agrarian Sector Programme, 1995-2000 (Ministry of Agrarian Reform) 391. The Agrarian Sector Programme, 1995-2000, developed by the Ministry of Agrarian Reform, promotes the organized participation of women in order to involve them in the development and improvement of their community by financing production projects which contribute to the well-being of rural families. In 1997, the Programme hopes to achieve the following goals: to meet 980 requests for financing to benefit organized rural women, and to formulate and evaluate 490 investment profiles for the establishment of projects undertaken by an equal number of organized groups of rural women. Rural Women's Programme (Ministry of Agrarian Reform) 392. The Rural Women's Programme, created in 1991 by the Ministry of Agrarian Reform, promotes the financing and operation of production activities and services to benefit organized rural women throughout the country. It has been offered primarily in disadvantaged regions with an indigenous population. 393. Under the Programme, support is given for the development of projects in response to requests from the women themselves, provided that the projects meet the organizational and basic infrastructure requirements specified. Loans are granted directly to the women concerned for their use and administration. Repayment of loans granted provides a basis for the financing of rural women, so that a continuing policy of evaluation and monitoring is maintained to ensure the proper development of the activities of those benefiting under the programme. 394. During the period 1991-1996, the Programme supported 10,372 projects which benefited directly 28,000 women and indirectly 139,000 people, under a scheme of low interest and repayment to cover reinvestment. Of these projects, 85 per cent were concentrated in 10 types of activities: cattle- raising, tortilla-making, sewing workshops, pig-raising, handicrafts, agriculture, food supplies, goat-raising, bakeries, and sheep-raising, which together accounted for 91 per cent of the financing granted. 395. In indigenous regions, the Programme has financed 528 projects involving more than 12,000 women. In these regions, the activities undertaken in the projects are concentrated in cattle-raising, handicrafts, agricultural production, pig-raising, food supplies, mills processing corn for tortillas, and tortilla-making establishments. 396. Although the Programme's strategy is based on the organization of five different forms of association, during the period 1991-1996 it has been based primarily on two associative bodies: the Women's Industrial- Agricultural Units (UAIM) and the Social Solidarity Societies (SSS), which received 90 per cent of the resources. The majority of women who received support belonged to some rural centre. Women in Rural Development (Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock-raising and Rural Development) 397. With effect from March 1996 - as part of the National Development Plan 1995-2000, which indicated the need to promote the participation of women in the economic, social, political and cultural life of the country, and the National Programme for Women - the programme Women in Rural Development (MDR) was created in the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock- raising and Rural Development (SAGAR) as a policy instrument for women in rural areas. It is composed of two strategic programmes derived from the National "Alliance for Rural Areas" Programme and is organized through the Department for Rural Development: - Training and extension services - Rural equipment (a) The training and extension services programme consists basically of the hiring of approximately 1,900 extension services personnel distributed throughout the nation, providing continuing attention to an average of four communities, with a view to encouraging rural development, in general, through training, technical assistance and advice and, in particular, promoting the rural equipment programme. The programme forms the National Rural Extension Services System (SINDER). (b) The rural equipment programme consists in offering encouragement for agricultural and livestock-raising activities and the transfer of technology. Its purpose is to raise the net income of producers, production and productivity through technology packages, demonstration plots of land, micro-enterprise funds, the promotion of orchards and horticulture and the encouragement of backyard cattle-raising activities, with subsidies of between 20 and 90 per cent of the costs. 398. The Programme has the following specific objectives: 1. To generate at all levels of the institutional structure an awareness of the importance of the participation of, and the problems relating to, rural women. 2. To integrate policies to support the participation of women in the courses of action of all the offices of the Department of Rural Development. 3. To establish an institutional structure at the national level which would support the implementation of the programme through the training of personnel so that they might in turn generate training activities and working methodologies for the network of the 1,900 extension services personnel on the topic of women in rural development. 4. To identify and promote, for the benefit of women in each state of the Republic, the institutional packages offered by the Alliance for Rural Areas and those included in the Rural Equipment Programme, which envisage support for the preferential use of women: packages to encourage agriculture and livestock- raising and backyard cattle-raising, hydroponics, greenhouses, orchards and horticulture, and funds for micro-industries. 5. To compile information, through SINDER, on the problems relating to, and the participation of, women in the economic, social and political activities of their communities with a view to integrating specific statistics on the subject. This work will make it possible to formulate projects with better gender projections and support in order to ensure the better integration of women into rural development. 6. To establish inter-agency agreements to develop a comprehensive effort for the benefit of rural women. 399. This programme has recorded the following achievements: 1. On 6 March 1996, a National Consultant Technical Group was formed, comprising specialists on the subject belonging to social organizations, research centres and academic institutions, institutions in the sector and other bodies such as the Coordinating Office for Women's Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the National Population Council and UNIFEM, and some non-governmental organizations, for the dissemination, analysis and validation of MDR. 2. The appointment and training in two workshops of 32 state managers of MDR. 3. The preparation of a manual for the guidance of all state managers. 4. The integration of the topic "Women in Rural Development and Gender" into two of the seven modules of the training programme for SINDER extension service personnel. 5. The preparation of cooperation agreements with other institutions, such as the Ministry of Agrarian Reform (Rural Women's Programme), the National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics, the Ministry of the Environment, Natural Resources and Fisheries, and FAO, amongst others. 400. Statistical survey in cooperation with the National Institute of Statistics, Geography and Informatics. During a first stage (March 1997), the survey consisted in the application of a questionnaire to all families of five selected population units to identify and quantify the participation and contribution of rural women in all production, social and political activities of the community. This survey will make it possible to identify variables to develop, in the second stage, a national survey during the second half of 1997. Programme for the Certification of Ejidos (Programme for the Certification of Ejidos) 401. The Programme for the Certification of Ejidos (PROCEDE) arose from the constitutional reforms and the new agrarian legislation. Its fundamental purpose is to provide certainty and legal security in land tenure. With PROCEDE, the individual rights of women holding shares in an ejido are protected, stability and permanence is established in the ejido, and better conditions are generated for participation in agrarian units and in producers associations. In this way, women can freely dispose of their land relying on the right of women landowners and residents who have the use of cultivable land or who live in the human settlement zone, subject to the approval of the Assembly of the ejido. 402. By August 1996, PROCEDE has made the following progress: of 27,410 ejidos in the country, 11,216 had been certified; this represented an advance of 40.9 per cent. 403. Some 1.2 million people, in possession of over 20 million hectares, have benefited from this Programme. Of the total number of people certified, 251,000 were women; this represents 20.9 per cent of the population benefiting from the Programme, of whom 55.5 per cent were holders of shares in an ejido, 7.5 per cent were land owners and 37 per cent were residents in a village. 404. That year, on the national level, the rights of 139,000 women holders of shares in ejidos were certified; this represented 17.5 per cent of the total number of holders of shares in ejidos. Women in Solidarity Programme (Ministry of Social Development) 405. The main purpose of the Women in Solidarity Programme, established in 1989, was to meet the specific needs of the female population living in conditions of poverty, fully integrating the women into the national modernization process and taking into account the broad national mosaic of life styles, traditions, culture and regional geographical characteristics. 406. Up to 1994, Women in Solidarity, provided financial support for production projects based on regional special interests (handicrafts, agriculture, fish-farming, among others), secondary projects and services projects which would help to change the quality of life of the family and the community. These projects were based on self-diagnosis by women to demonstrate their viability and to show that they could be carried out with the participation of the women themselves by self-management. 1. From 1989 to 1994 the Women in Solidarity Programme promoted the carrying out of 3,580 activities with women in the rural sector, directly benefiting 158,514 women. 2. Of the 3,580 activities carried out during this period, those most in demand, in order of importance, were the following: - Mills to prepare nixtamal dough for making tortillas - Improvement of housing - Community farms - Sewing workshops - Bakeries - Provision stores 407. Although this programme disappeared at the national level in 1994, it remains in some states in the Republic and provides an important precedent for continued support for groups of rural women, although with many budgetary constraints. Programme for Women (Ministry of Social Development) 408. The Programme for Women of the Ministry of Social Development promotes the execution of production, social and services projects with a view to improving the levels of well-being of the female population in rural areas and in poor urban districts. It has contributed to the well-being of 103,713 women by generating 367 production projects, 407 provision projects and 1,569 social well-being projects, in both rural and urban areas in the country. Agricultural Day Labourers' Programme (Ministry of Social Development) 409. Through the Agricultural Day Labourers' Programme of the Ministry of Social Development, support is given to comprehensive projects dealing with housing and environmental sanitation, food and provisions, health and social security, education, culture and recreation, employment, training and productivity, and the teaching of justice, with a view to improving the living and employment conditions of the agricultural day labourer migrant population, particularly women. Of the activities carried out under the Programme, mention should be made of the promotion of 10,429 projects benefiting 156,000 women employed in agriculture. Tropical Forest Programme of Action (Ministry of the Environment, Natural Resources and Fisheries) 410. The Tropical Forest Programme of Action, which comes under the Ministry of the Environment, Natural Resources and Fisheries, organizes viable projects to ensure the efficient use of natural resources. Of these, mention should be made of the so-called "Decision-making process and forms of participation of women in irrigation zones", carried out in El Carrizo Sinaloa, and the interdisciplinary project on "Technological restructuring for the sustainable production of family market gardens of the population in irrigation zones". Among other elements, the projects involve processes of innovation and the transfer of technology; the building of consensus between women and the various partners involved; the introduction of new technology to increase productivity and improve the quality of production; a diagnosis for the marketing of surpluses and the creation of a new water culture and production culture. With regard to the tropical forest zones, the programme proposes strategies to improve the quality of life of communities and to achieve the full integration of women into the development of the rural communities of these areas; to that end, a relevant element of the programme is training to encourage the organization of women's groups in their own communities, with a view to developing projects linked to the conservation and management of natural resources. Drinking Water and Sanitation in Rural Areas Programme (National Water Commission) 411. Through the Drinking Water and Sanitation in Rural Areas Programme, the National Water Commission involves communities, especially women, in the planning, execution, operation, management and maintenance of drinking water supply systems; in this way, the community takes over the systems, thereby guaranteeing their proper functioning over the long term. In coordination with the Ministry of Health, the Commission also promotes the prevention and control of infectious diseases transmitted by water. In this connection, work is being carried out to chlorinate, disinfect and clean up water supply sources and storage tanks; to disinfect water in schools, terminals, hospitals and markets; and to provide training in the use and management of resources. World Food Programme (Ministry of Agrarian Reform) 412. The World Food Programme consists in supplying food rations free of charge to groups which obtain financing through the World Food Programme of the United Nations, which operates a fund for indigenous and extremely deprived regions. 413. Moreover, the Agrarian Law Office and the Ministry of Agrarian Reform encourage the participation of women in organs representing ejidos and communities in the country; in this connection, women are represented in 3,093 of the total number of such organs. ARTICLE 15 414. In constitutional terms, women have no legal limitation whatsoever, since the law views them as having the same rights and obligations as men. In keeping with the constitutional precept, the Civil Codes of the states expressly recognize that principle in establishing the legal equality of men and women. However, the legal capacity of individuals also includes the capacity to exercise it, which in the case of Mexican women is reduced by some articles of the Civil Codes of the states, which differ from one entity to another. 415. In effect, some aspects of the secondary legislation limit the capacity of Mexican women to exercise their legal capacity, as in the case of the exercise of the right to enter into a second marriage which, according to article 158 of the Civil Code of the Federal District, may only be exercised 300 days after the dissolution of the first marriage; there is no such rule in the case of men. This is a limitation for women; however, its aim is to protect the family against possible paternity conflicts which could arise if a marriage was celebrated immediately following the dissolution of an earlier marriage. Another case is the recognition of children born out of wedlock, which is mandatory only for women. 416. Faced with these limitations to the equality of women, the National Programme for Women, as a mechanism of the Government of the Republic whose principal aim is to achieve equality of opportunity between men and women, has made it a priority to "revise the federal secondary legislation and local legislation to ensure conformity with the constitutional principle of the legal equality of men and women". 417. In addition to this effort, as mentioned in the first section of this report, a study has been made by the National Human Rights Commission; this is an extensive study consisting of 33 volumes, in the process of being published, which notes in detail the deficiencies of some of the legislation analysed from the perspective of gender, without overlooking the legal interest in protecting the family which gave rise to this legislation. 418. It is important, nevertheless, to clarify that in general the secondary legislation fulfils the purposes of ensuring not only the legal capacity of women but also that of men. 419. Thus, on the capacity to inherit, article 1313 of the Civil Code for the Federal District states: "All the inhabitants of the Federal District, of whatever age, have the capacity to inherit and may not be deprived of that capacity absolutely; in the case of certain persons and certain property, however, they may lose that capacity for one of the following reasons: I. Lack of status; II. Crime; III. Presumption of influence contrary to the liberty of the testator or the truth or integrity of the will; IV. Lack of international reciprocity; V. Public utility; VI. Renunciation or removal of any obligation conferred in the will." 420. With regard to the property ownership system, article 723 of the Civil Code of the Federal District states: "The following form part of the family patrimony: I. The house in which the family resides; II. In some cases, a plot of cultivable land." 421. And article 724 states: "The establishment of the family patrimony does not make the ownership of the property assigned to it and which it comprises pass to members of the beneficiary family." 422. Article 725 states: "The spouse of a person who has established a family patrimony and those whom he has an obligation to feed shall have the right to live in the house and make use of the fruits of the plot of land forming part of the patrimony. This right is not transmissible, but the provisions of article 740 must be taken into account." 423. Article 740: "Once the family patrimony has been established, the family has an obligation to live in the house and cultivate the plot of land. The first municipal authority of the locality in which it is established may, for just cause, authorize its rental or lease for sharecropping for a period of up to one year." 424. On the other hand, article 726 states: "The beneficiaries of property assigned to a family patrimony shall be represented in relations with third parties in all matters relating to the patrimony by the person who established the patrimony or, failing that, by a person designated by the majority. "The representative shall also be responsible for the administration of the property." 425. It will be seen from the foregoing that, under the property ownership system, a woman has the same right to administer property when she is designated a representative thereof. 426. With regard to the joint ownership of property by husband and wife, article 194 of the Civil Code of the Federal District states: "The ownership of communal property rests with both spouses as long as the marriage endures. The administration of the property shall remain with whichever of the spouses has been designated in the marriage articles, a stipulation which may be freely modified without any need for a statement of cause; in the event of a disagreement, the family judge shall resolve the matter." 427. Article 9 of the Commercial Code states: "Married people, both men and women, engaged in commerce may mortgage their immovable property to cover their commercial obligations and may appear in court without the consent of the other spouse when the regime is that of the separation of property. "Under the regime of the joint ownership of property by husband and wife, neither a man nor a woman engaged in commerce may mortgage or pledge either property jointly owned or his or her own property the fruits or products of which form part of the jointly owned property, without the consent of the other spouse." ARTICLE 16 428. Family relations are governed by civil law. Article 148 of the Civil Code of the Federal District establishes, among other considerations, the age required to enter into marriage: "A man must be 16 years of age and a woman 14. The Head of the Department of the Federal District, or persons delegated by him, as the case may be, may grant a dispensation for serious and just cause." 429. The state Codes establish 14 years of age for women and 16 for men, 16 for both, or 18 for both, and in all cases require a corresponding dispensation. 430. With regard to the custody of children, a distinction is made in the cases of divorce by mutual consent and a judicial divorce. In the former case, the custody of the children is agreed between the two spouses and is almost always awarded to the mother. In the case of a judicial divorce, the custody of the children is determined by the judge. 431. As for the property of the spouses, cases of separate property or property in joint ownership are determined by the regulations, without any distinction being made between the man and the woman. 432. With regard to the custody of children when the divorce is by mutual consent, article 273 of the Civil Code of the Federal District states: "The spouses referred to in the last paragraph of the previous article shall be required to present to the court an agreement covering the following points: I. The designation of the person to whom the children of the marriage are to be entrusted both during the proceedings and after the divorce has been granted; ..." 433. On the question of who should be granted custody of the children in the case of a judicial divorce, article 282 of the Civil Code of the Federal District states: "When an application for divorce is received, or earlier in the case of an emergency, the following provisions shall apply temporarily, only for the duration of the proceedings: "VI. The children shall be placed in the care of the person designated by agreement between the spouses, who may be one of the latter. In the absence of such agreement, the spouse applying for the divorce shall propose the person to whom the children shall be entrusted provisionally. Subject to the procedure established in the relevant code, the judge shall resolve the matter. "Except where the normal development of the children is endangered, minors under six years of age shall remain in the care of the mother." 434. According to civil legislation, both women and men have the full capacity to inherit, without any limitation on the grounds of sex. 435. On the question of the regime of joint ownership of property by husband and wife, article 194 of the Civil Code of the Federal District states: "The ownership of communal property rests with both spouses as long as the marriage endures. The administration of the property shall remain with whichever of the spouses has been designated in the marriage articles, a stipulation which may be freely modified, without any need for a statement of cause, and in the event of a disagreement, the family judge shall resolve the matter." 436. Article 9 of the Commercial Code states: "Married people, both men and women, engaged in commerce may mortgage their immovable property to cover their commercial obligations and may appear in court without the consent of the other spouse when the regime is that of the separation of property. "Under the regime of joint ownership of property by husband and wife, neither a man nor a woman engaged in commerce may mortgage or pledge either property jointly owned or his or her own property the fruits or products of which form part of the jointly owned property, without the consent of the other spouse." 437. The only difference between men and women determined by law relates to the age required to enter into marriage, as indicated at the beginning of this section. Legal protection of women in consensual relationships 438. Conhabitation is an institution certain aspects of which are protected, such as the effects which it may have on the children of a couple in a consensual relationship. 439. Reference is therefore made to the provisions relating to succession, and specifically to article 1635 of the Civil Code of the Federal District, which refers to succession in the case of those in consensual relationships and defines them as follows: "A man and a woman who have lived as if they were spouses during the five years immediately preceding the death of one of them or when they have had children together, provided that both were unmarried during the period of cohabitation." 440. From this it appears that cohabitation is a de facto situation which produces legal effects, unlike marriage which is a legal institution. 441. Cohabitation is regulated in certain ways, inter alia in the following pieces of legislation: Federal Labour Act Article 501 Mexican Social Security Institute Act Articles 72, 92 and 152 Agrarian Reform Act Article 82 Government Employee Social Security and Services Institute Act Article 32-I Notes 1/ CEDAW/C/5/Add.2; CEDAW/C/13/Add.10 and CEDAW/C/13/Add.10/Amend.1; and CEDAW/C/MEX/3, respectively. 2/ Introduction to Cotejo de las normas federales que contienen disposiciones relativas a las mujeres y a la ni¤ez con la Convenci¢n sobre la eliminaci¢n de todas las formas de discriminaci¢n contra la mujer y la Convenci¢n de los Derechos en Ni¤o". The 33 volumes containing the study are in the process of publication. 3/ Article 3, paragraph II, subparagraph (c). 4/ Article 8, section III. 5/ For example, in the Federal District, of the complaints lodged during the first half of 1995, only about 5 per cent related to harassment, together with rape and adultery. 6/ In 1991, women made up 54.1 per cent of the national electoral roll. 7/ In 1988 there were 12 female members of the Assembly; in 1991, 14. 8/ Prior to the amendment of article 3 of the Constitution, through the Decree of 4 March 1993, only primary education was compulsory. 9/ 72,148 new students were enrolled in telesecondary education alone, 50 per cent of whom were estimated to be women from scattered localities and those which are difficult of access. 10/ 63 per cent, or 2.2 million women. 11/ National report on food security for the World Food Summit. 12/ The Programme is the product of a consensus reached within the Inter-agency Group on Reproductive Health, in which the following participate: the Ministry of Health (SSA), the Mexican Social Security Institute (IMSS), the Government Employee Social Security and Services Institute (ISSSTE), the National Scheme for Comprehensive Family Development (DIF), the National Indigenous Institute (INI), Mexican Petroleum (PEMEX), the Ministry of National Defence (SEDENA), the Ministry of the Navy (SECMAR), the State Office of Public Health Services of the Federal District (DGSSPDF), the General Secretariat of the National Population Council (CONAPO), the Mexican Family Planning Foundation (MEXFAM), the Youth Family Planning Council (COPLAFAM), the Mexican Federation of Private Health and Community Development Associations (FEMAP), the Adolescent Guidance Centre (CORA), the Committee to Promote the Safe Maternity Initiative, and the Information Group on Reproduction by Choice (GIRE). 13/ The highest increase in the prevalence of the use of contraceptives was 3.3 as an annual average and was noted during the period 1979-1982. 14/ A gradual increase has been recorded among women, with a higher rate of expansion than among men. 15/ Mujer Adolescente, Adulta y Anciana. Mexico: 1992. 16/ By 1991, it already accounted for 34 per cent. 17/ For further information, see the section concerning the implementation of article 14 of the Convention.