In addition to typical problems drivers face while transporting cargo, Mexico’s militant teacher’s union known as the National Coordinator of Education Workers has been conducting roadblocks in response to the 2013 education reform.
The FreightWatch International Supply Chain Intelligence Center (SCIC) reported Mexico’s highest-risk areas for cargo theft are concentrated in the central region of Mexico, mainly in the states of Guanajuato, Puebla, Queretaro and the state of México.
Mexico’s top five states with the highest amount of reported cargo thefts during the second quarter of 2016 were Guanajuato with 64 reported incidents, followed by Puebla and Querétaro with 43 reported incidents each, the state of México with 26 reported incidents and Jalisco with 23 reported incidents, according to the FWI SCIC’s Q2 2016 Cargo Theft Intelligence Report for Mexico.
In terms of product type, food and drinks accounted for 27 percent of reported cargo thefts during the quarter, followed by unknown products (25 percent), building and industrial (11 percent), and fuel (11 percent).
Typically, cargo theft occurred while the cargo was in transit, accounting for 80.4 percent of reported cases during the quarter; followed by roadside theft (9.7 percent); inside the client’s yard facilities (9.1 percent); and inside yards, boarding houses or workshops (0.9 percent).
Rail theft, which primarily occurs in the western region or lowlands of the country, accounted for 22 percent of reported cargo thefts during the quarter.
In addition, criminals are known to intercept cargo trucks when their speed is reduced at toll plazas, blocking their GPS signals with “jammers” or satellite inhibitors.
Overall, it is estimated that 45 armed Mexican cartels are in operation throughout the country, dividing narcotrafficking control and other criminal activities between the regions they operate.
Another concern drivers have been facing are road blocks being conducted by the militant teacher’s union known as the National Coordinator of Education Workers (CNTE).
President Enrique Pena Nieto of the Institutional Revolutionary Party had pushed the 2013 education reform through congress, which set new standards in accountability where there were almost none, the Wall Street Journal said.
The reform requires teacher evaluations, allows university graduates not from teaching schools to compete for jobs in the classroom, forbids teachers from selling their posts or passing them on as inheritance and union members employed as political activists are no longer allowed to collect a teacher’s salary.
As a result, the union has been implementing various protests.
The social conflict has mainly impacted the Southeastern and Western regions of the country, especially in Oaxaca, Chiapas and Michoacan, resulting in roadblocks on various highways, FWI said.
Press reports from Oaxaca said extremist revolutionary groups gathered to support CNTE’s roadblocks in Nochixtlan, Oaxaca June 19, which left multiple people dead, the Wall Street Journal said.
FWI said the uproar is likely to worsen, generating violence, shortage and economic losses in the coming months.
FWI: Mexico’s central region reports the most cargo thefts
