Good News for Gang Recruiters, Bad News for Mexicans

The population that most worries analysts with regard for the potential for gang violence in Mexico to continue to grow are the so-called Ni-Nis, young people who neither study nor work (ni estudian, ni trabajan). According to Inegi, that group now accounts for just under 2 million Mexicans, and has grown by 250,000, or almost 15 percent, in the past two years. Hopefully, the economic recovery will help put a dent into that number, thus undermining one of the factors driving insecurity. You'd think a young a determined jobs program targeted at new entries into the labor market could also help, and it would be a good idea even if it didn't end up having much impact on security. In any event, as much as we hear about Calderón's policies driving the spike in violence in Mexico, we don't hear nearly as much about the economic crisis as a factor.