Added Merida Initiative Accords to Prevent Crime and Violence in Mexico

USA Diplomatic Mission to Mexico

The Embassy of the United States, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) will provide funding over the next three years to support local Mexican organizations working in the area of crime and violence prevention in Mexico. The funding is part of the Merida Initiative, a historic cooperation mechanism that acknowledges the shared responsibilities of the United States and Mexico to counter drug-fueled violence threatening citizens on both sides of the border.

USAID/Mexico is partnering with four local organizations to support crime and violence prevention efforts in Mexico.  The work by these organizations will focus on two objectives: 1) Generating opportunities for at-risk youth to contribute productively in their communities; and, 2) Supporting efforts to facilitate the replication of successful crime prevention models through strategic partnerships.

The four partners and their scope of work include:

•    Alianza Heartland Mexico will work in select communities in Monterrey to implement activities that will focus on empowering at-risk youth to play a more productive role in their communities. This prevention model will work with youth to learn how to build healthy relationships, acquire new life skills, and gain independence through social and economic entrepreneurship.

•     Fundacion Mexicana de Apoyo Infantil will implement a school-based violence prevention model to build greater peace and stability among at-risk youth in Tijuana, Monterrey, Culiacan, and Acapulco. This activity will engage at-risk youth through formal education platforms and be implemented through workshops and participatory activities in the schools as well as in the communities in order to reach youth that are outside the formal education system.

•      Via Educacion, in partnership with RedSumaRSE, will strengthen citizens’ ability to lead and manage community-based activities focused on crime and violence and strengthen alliances among civil society organizations working toward crime and violence prevention in Monterrey.

•     Reinserta will implement activities that will assist at-risk youth, previously or currently incarcerated, in developing the skills, confidence, mental and physical health and positive social connections necessary to live outside the penal system and play a productive role in their communities. The activity will work in targeted delegations and detention centers in Mexico City.

USAID is the U.S. government agency in charge of managing cooperation and assistance programs. USAID supports economic development, health, education, democracy, agriculture, conflict prevention and offers humanitarian assistance in case of natural disaster. Under the Merida Initiative, USAID programs support strengthened rule of law and the protection of human rights, as well as community-based initiatives to mitigate the impact of crime and violence.

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Press release, Nov. 5, 2015, Embassy of the United States, Mexico City