President Claudia Sheinbaum announced Monday that 350 billion pesos (US $19.7 billion) will be allocated to school construction and improvement over all grade levels by the time her six-year term ends in 2030.

She pointed out that, when combined with her predecessor’s spending on education infrastructure ($12.8 billion), the investment will surpass the total allocated during the Fox, Calderón and Peña Nieto administrations combined (2000-2018).

Sheinbaum emphasized that this reflects the Morena political party’s focus on improving education in Mexico. 

Backing her up was Education Minister Mario Delgado, who shared the podium with the president at Monday’s mañanera and said that the incumbent administration views education as a fundamental right and a central pillar of the so-called Fourth Transformation (4T).

Delgado said that significant funds will be dedicated to the expansion of the “La Escuela es Nuestra” (Our School) program, as well as to strengthening educational institutions, such as the Rosario Castellanos University in Mexico City.

In the 2025-2026 fiscal year, the government plans to invest 113 billion pesos in Our School, which has provided 404,588 grants to over 187,000 public schools since its creation in 2019, according to Education Ministry data.

“This is an incentive that goes directly to the institution, without intermediaries,” Delgado said.

How much did previous administrations spend on education infrastructure?

In the previous four six-year terms, spending on education construction and building improvement was as follows: 

• 2000-2006: 38 billion pesos ($2.1 billion at today’s exchange rate)

• 2006-2012: 84 billion pesos ($4.7 billion) 

• 2012-2018: 183 billion pesos ($10.3 billion) 

• 2018-2024: 228 billion pesos ($12.8 billion)

These figures show that education infrastructure spending began to increase significantly during the Peña Nieto administration, before the López Obrador government accelerated the spending.

According to an October report by the Research Center for Public Policy (IMCO), the budget for educational infrastructure in upper secondary and higher education will face a 0.5% reduction in real terms from Sheinbaum’s first full year in office in 2025 to what is predicted for 2026, thus moving that 350 billion-peso figure a little farther away.  

Education infrastructure spending under López Obrador’s last two years in office and Sheinbaum’s first two:

• 2023: 892 million pesos ($50.19 million) 
• 2024: 893 million pesos ($50.2 million)
• 2025: 862 million pesos ($48.5 million)
• 2026: 858 million pesos ($48.3 million projected)

 With reports from Diario de México, Quadratin México and SN Digital