Mexican seniors are expected to receive a combined 339 billion pesos in government pension funds in 2023, a 25% increase from last year.
The 11 million adults registered in the pension program will each receive 4,800 pesos (US $247) every two months.
In 2021, President López Obrador announced an annual 25% increase until 2024, at which point the amount given to each individual would be about 6,000 pesos every two months. In 2022, the payments amounted to 3,800 pesos per person.
In 2018, the year President López Obrador took office, the payments were 1,160 pesos per recipient.
During his morning press conference on Tuesday, President López Obrador stated that payments to seniors can currently be made both through private banks and the government-owned Banco del Bienestar (Bank of Well-Being).
Recipients in remote communities where banks are nonexistent will still be allowed to receive payments in cash for the time being. During the second half of the year, however, the cash payments will be replaced with payments through the government-owned bank, the president said.
There are currently 2,500 Banco del Bienestar branches, and this number is expected to reach 3,000 by the end of the month.
Banco del Bienestar’s objective is to disperse financial resources to remote areas not served by private banks. However, it has faced financial difficulties, and the construction of new branches are expected to further strain its finances.
By the end of the first two months of the year, about 52.6 billion pesos will be dispersed, according to Minister of Well-Being Ariadna Montiel Reyes. Funds will be distributed on specific dates according to the first letter of the recipient’s last name.
While in the past, payments were made in a single day, it will now be done over five days, between Jan. 4 and Jan. 10, to avoid saturating the banks with customers.
With reports from La Jornada and CNN
