A team of volunteers from Cape Cod, Massachusetts joined together to travel to Mexico to help families achieve their dream of owning a safe, durable home in March, 2019.
In Mexico, more than 50 percent of the population live in conditions of poverty, and with 59 percent earning less than three minimum wages per day, many lack the means to buy or build adequate housing. In Nayarit alone, 121,000 people live in poverty and 227,000 don’t have access to electricity, drinkable water or sewer systems.
Since 1989, Habitat for Humanity Mexico has fought poverty through adequate housing, supporting and empowering more than 57,000 families in organized communities. Despite the progress that has been made in providing housing in recent years, more than 53.3 million people in Mexico do not have the financial means to buy or build adequate housing (45.5%).
Family income has been losing purchasing power: 60.6 million people (51.6%)earn incomes below the welfare line, which are insufficient to acquire the goods and services they require to meet their most basic subsistence needs. Of this population, 15.9 million people (13.6%) live in homes with dirt floors, roofs made of tin, cardboard or debris, walls made of mud, reeds, palm or sheet; 24.9 million (21.2%) have no access to basic services of potable water, drainage, electricity and fuel for cooking or heating food. In addition, more than 538,000 families live in overcrowded conditions.
Habitat for Humanity Mexico works to combat poverty, supporting low-income families in building their homes; promoting community development through influencing public policies; attracting public and private resources for housing and sensitizing governments, donors and volunteers on the human right to live in adequate housing.
Global Village is Habitat for Humanity’s international volunteer program. Teams travel to over 40 countries to work alongside communities, build housing solutions, and experience local culture. Our goal is to change the lives of the people we serve, as well as the lives of the volunteers. To join a team or learn more, visit www.habitat.org/gv.
About Habitat for Humanity International
Driven by the vision that everyone needs a decent place to live, Habitat for Humanity began in 1976 as a grassroots effort on a community farm in southern Georgia. The housing organization has since grown to become a leading global nonprofit working in more than 1,300 communities throughout the U.S. and in more than 70 countries. Families and individuals in need of a hand up partner with Habitat for Humanity to build or improve a place they can call home. Habitat homeowners help build their own homes alongside volunteers and pay an affordable mortgage. Through financial support, volunteering or adding a voice to support affordable housing, everyone can help families achieve the strength, stability and self-reliance they need to build better lives for themselves. Through shelter, we empower. To learn more, visit habitat.org.