Country Legal Mapping of Mexico has been updated based on the 2020/24 National Water Programme – for reference, it can be found on our website here.

At the request of Leo Heller, Special Rapporteur for water and Sanitation, we made a legal mapping in Mexico in 2017, with emphasis on three states : Jalisco, Chiapas, and Ciudad de Mexico. The analysis was conducted with the aim of demonstrating how the current national legal framework in Mexico reflects the normative content of the HRWS and related human rights principles, and how those rights are protected.

The water governance framework of Mexico spans multiple levels of government: federal, regional, state, and municipal. The National Constitution confirms water as a national asset over which the Federal Executive maintains authority. This authority includes instituting regulatory provisions as a means of maintaining control over the extraction of groundwater. As part of the Executive, various Ministries exercise activities in relation to management of national water resources. However, it is the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources (SEMARNAT) which has the chief mandate. Pursuant to the National Water Law, the National Water Commission (CONAGUA), an independent unit of SEMARNAT, has an extensive range of duties inclusive of ensuring security and sustainability of Mexico’s water resources, managing water rights and development of hydrologic infrastructure.

During 2020, we updated this Legal Mapping, to be used as a tool to support the development of the National Water Programme 2020/2024 accomplished by CONAGUA.