SEDATU Reports Progress on UN New Urban Agenda Goals

The Ministry of Agrarian, Territorial and Urban Development (SEDATU) has presented Mexico’s 2025 progress report under the UN’s New Urban Agenda (NAU), highlighting achievements in inclusive, resilient, and sustainable development. Drafted by UN-Habitat and ratified by UN member states in 2016, the NAU establishes three main commitments: (1) Sustainable Urban Development for Social Inclusion and Ending Poverty, (2) Integrated, Sustainable Urban Development and Opportunities for All, and (3) Environmentally Sustainable and Resilient Urban Development. Mexico’s report details progress across these commitments from 2021 to 2024.

Commitment 1: Significant advances were made in agrarian, mobility, and indigenous development. Nearly 2.5 million people gained access to legal mechanisms for land registration, over 5.2 million achieved land regularization, and more than 116,000 land titles were issued. On mobility, federal laws established a National Mobility and Road Safety System, a National Urban Collective Public Transport Policy, and a National Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) strategy to promote compact, environmentally friendly cities.

In partnership with the National Institute of Indigenous Peoples (INPI), the Justice Plan for the Yaqui Peoples delivered infrastructure benefiting 2,161 families across all eight Yaqui tribes in 49 localities. Projects included over 5,000 residential drinking water intakes and 5,000 discharge points, while MX$697 million (US$31.2 million) funded 2,197 new housing units and 37 public spaces. Under the Justice Plan for the Wixárika Peoples, nearly 6,000 hectares of previously stolen land in Yesca, Nayarit, were restituted, with another 2,612 hectares granted administratively. In Chihuahua, more than 300 hectares were transferred to the Rarámuri-Tarahumara People, and over 500 hectares to the Tepehuán People.

Commitment 2: The report emphasized community benefits from key infrastructure projects. Along the Interoceanic Corridor of the Isthmus of Tehuantepec, nearly 3,000 families received land deeds, while 101 public space and mobility improvements were implemented in Oaxaca, Veracruz, and Chiapas. Over 200 hectares of land were returned to communities during work on Lake Texcoco Ecological Park. Connectivity improvements included the opening of Felipe Ángeles International Airport and the Tren Maya.

Planned initiatives include an expanded passenger rail network, enhanced hurricane response strategies, and development programs for vulnerable populations in the Balsas River Basin. Additionally, a Justice Plan for Guerrero’s Montaña Region, home to Afro-Mexican and indigenous communities, was launched to address long-standing marginalization.

Commitment 3: SEDATU underscored measures for environmental resilience and urban sustainability. A National Reconstruction Program rebuilt nearly 63,000 homes in Chiapas, Oaxaca, Puebla, Morelos, Guerrero, the State of Mexico, Veracruz, and Mexico City following the 2017–2018 earthquakes. The program also rehabilitated 5,473 schools and 161 hospitals and health centers. Risk assessment sheets are being developed to mitigate damage from future seismic events.

On climate change, the report cited the 2025 National Climate Change Strategy and the updated 2022 Nationally Determined Contribution. SEDATU reported that by 2024, greenhouse gas emissions reductions reached 100 million t of CO₂ equivalent.

Looking Ahead (2025–2030): SEDATU projects nearly 2 million homes will be constructed, with over 1 million housing grants and loans and more than 1 million land titles issued. A presidential commitment to provide 250,000 agrarian certificates to women will be implemented through the new National Advisory Council for Gender Equality in Social Property.