Helmut K. Anheier, Stefan Toepler, Regina List (Eds).

International Encyclopedia
of Civil Society
Volume 1
A-C

With 40 Figures and 44 Tables

Springer
HELMUT K. ANHEIER
Unwersity of Heidelberg
Heidelberg
Germany
Hertie School of Governance
The
Berlin
authl
Germany
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STEFAN TOEPLER
studt
George Mason University
capit
Arlington, VA
inclu
1
USA
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Marlies Glasius Francis Nyamnjoh Filip

University of Amsterdam Council for the Development of Social Research in Stock¡
Amsterdam Africa (CODESRIA) Stock¡
The Netherlands Dakar Swed
Senegal
Xavier Greife Naotc
University of Paris Tae-Kyu Park Osaka
Paris Yonsei University Osaka
France Seoul Japan
South Korea
Steven Heydemann
United States Institute of Peace Víctor Pérez-Díaz
Washington, DC Analistas Socio-Politicos (ASP)
USA Madrid
Spain
Mary Kaidor
London School of Economics and Political Science Susan Pharr
London Harvard University
UK Cambridge, MA
USA
Haga¡ Katz
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Jan Aart Scholte
Be'er Sheva
University of Warwick
Israel
Coventry
UK
Jürgen Kocka
London School of Economics
Wissenschaftszentrum Berlin
London
Berlin
UK
Gerrnany

Hakan Seckinelgin
Eva Kuti
London School of Economics and Political Science
Budapest College of Management
London
Budapest
UK
l-lungary

Myles McGregor-Lowndes Steven Rathgeb Smith

Queensland University of Technology University of Washington
Brisbane, QLD Seattle, WA
Australia USA

Henrietta Moore Volker Then

London School of Economics and Political Science University of Heidelberg
London Heidelberg
UK Germany

Alejandro Natal Michel Wieviorka

El Colegio Mexiquense [cole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales
Toluca Paris
Mexico France
262 Civil Sodety and Soda¡ Capital in Mexico and Central America
culture & recreation, civic & advocacy, religion, profes.
sional organization, have more than 16 million member-
ships in total. The participation rate in voluntary service is
14.6% and more than 63% of Korean people participate in
charitable giving.
Concluding Assessment
Since the end of the Japanese colonial period, nonprofit
organizations have played an important role in Korean
society. Nonprofit organizations have been acting as
major providers in education, social welfare, and medical
services as well as important employers in those arcas.
Advocacy nonprofit organizations also have contributed
to political democratization and to building a new gov-
ernance model of Korean society. Especially, in Korea,
advocacy-oriented nonproflt organizations that have
blossomed beginning in the late 1980s' have changed the
characteristics and role of Korean civil society profoundly.
Those organizations have begun to participate actively in
public discussions on many important social issues and
sometimes offered policy alternatives to the government.
They have been remarkably successful in broadening pub-
lic agenda in politics and the media, and they have been
pivotal in reforming the national governance structure in
Korea. Civil society has had a signiflcant impact on socie-
tal development and change in Korea. 1-lowever, the activ-
ities of NPOs in Korea are constrained by insuflicient
personnel and financia] resources. And they are some-
times blamed for opaqueness in its operation for the
inadequate accountability and less transparency.
Nevertheless, the capacity and opportunity of institu-
tion building of the nonproflt sector will he more concrete
in Korea. It is expected that the governments in Korea will
institutionalize the impact of civil society and build a
good relationship between government and civil society.
Cross-References
• Advocacy
• Clubs and Clans
• Labor Movements/Labor Unions
• Nongovernmental Organizations, Definition and
History
• Social Movements
• Social Trust
• QUANGOs
References/Further Readings
Cilizens' News Paper. (2(06). Korea rionprolit organizalion )carbook.
Citizens' News I'aper. (2006). Korea nonprofit orgunization yearbook
2006, (:iti.ciss' Ncws Paper, Seoul, Korea. (in Korean).
Hwang, C. -S., & Kim, 1. (1999). Tht' history of nonprofit organizations
jo Korea. Seot,l, Korea: Institute of Last & Wcst Studies, Yonsci
Univcrsity.
Jung, K. S. (1991 ) ... .. he historical rcview oí privaie nonprofit activitica in
Korea," Social Science Review, Institue oí Social Scienec Rcseareh,
Vol. 2, pp. 279-311. Kangnung National t.Jniversity, Kangnung
Kangwon-do. Korea. (in Korcan).
Jung, K. -5. (1991). 'Ihe historical review oí privatc nonproht activities in
Korea. Social Scjenct' ¡4evicw of Kangnung University, 2.
Kim. 1.. & Hwang, C. -S (1999). i)eJining ¡he nonproJii sector. Seou(, Kores:
Insthute oí East & Weat Siudies, Yonsei University.
¡Corea Nationa Statistics Office. (2006). 2005 Social indicators it, Kores,
Korca National Statistics Office, Scoul, Korea. (in Korean)
National Statistics Office of Korea. (2006). Social indicators ni ¡<ore,•.
Park, T. K. (20(16). A siudy on estirnation oí nonprof'it organizations sod
jis econornie meaning. Quarterly Bulleti,i, Bank oí Korca.
l'ark. T. K. (2006). "A study on eslimation oí nonproflt organieations
and ita cconomic meaning," Quarterly National Accounts, Vol. 4,
44-77, Bank of Korca, Seoul. Korea. (in Korean).
Park, l -K., lee, H. —k., Hwang, C. —S., & Kim, 1. (2005). 1 he inipatI of
¡he nonproJis sector in Asia,, industrial countries. Seoul, Korca: Insti
tute oí East & West Studies, Vonsci University.
YOU, M M. (1998). ihc history and social íunctions oí non-governmcntal
social moverncnt organizalions in receni Korea. Vonyseo Yongu, ID.
77-12(1.
Civil Socíety and Social Capital in
Mexico and Central America
Al.EJANt)Ro NAlAl.', JoK;l CADENA-ROA 2
SAKA Goklx)N RAppopowl 2
'El Colegio Mexiquense, Toluca, Mexico
'Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Mexico
City, Mexico
Introduction
After independence, the countries of the region inherited a
number of associations organized around the Cathohc
Church, who was the main provider for social needs.
l'herefore, Catholic values permeated social action: social
care was understood as a moral duty, and philanthropy and
volunteering as Christian charity. Nonetheless, the nine-
tcenth century witnessed a number of associative forms -
ndependent from the state and the Church in financing
and decision making. 'l'hese were mainly scientific, artistic,
and cultural associations that emerged in most cities and
even in some towns of the region. Similarly, mainly in
Mexico, severa¡ associations started to promote political
culture and build up public opinion. This was the case o)
the Patriotic Juntas dedicated to promote republican
 Civil Society and Social Capital ¡o Mexico and Central America
ons deals by organizing civic festivities and honoring national
Isci
heroes, therefore playing an important role in civic values
socialization and the creation of national identity. In the
nineteenth century, independent media became also an
important channel for developing public opinion. l'here
were intense debates on federalism and on citizenship
rights, among others. In parallel, the growth of higher
education institutions contributed to spreading liberal
ideas. The National University and the Institutos Literarios
(Centers for Higher Education) in Mexico, the University
of San Carlos in Guatemala, and the University of Leon in
Nicaragua became spaces where liberal ideas were shared
and openly discussed.
These educative centers contributed lo the construction
of independent states vis-a-vis factual powers, such as the
military and the Catholic Church. They paved the way to
liberal governments and fostered the enactrnent of laws
airned at consolidating the new States. Liberals also brought
a new understanding of social care, which turned private
charity and moral commitment into a state duty, contri-
huting lo further differentiate the associative sector. In
Mexico, liberal laws and specialized ftind-raising agencies
boosted social assistance and the emergence of civil society
organizations (CSOs), such as second-tier grant makers,
social and mutual organizations, as well as social assistance
nonprofits (mainly hospitais and orphanages). Similar ten-
dencies took place in Central America, where Liberal
Reforms - undertook roughly from 1870 until the 1930s -
fostered the creation of severa¡ rnutuality associations.
However, liberal ideas and reforms were inhibited by
lack of administrative experience, political instability, and
bankruped govcrnments. AU this cornpounded with en-
d,rnj, ?roblcrns, such as, a restraizied acceas to education,
widcsprcad povcrty and systcmi inctjuati(y. Rcforms also
clashed with a culture of intolerance, privilege, hierarchi-
cal, and exclusionary values, as well as by an understand-
ing of citizenship that marginalized the majority of the
population: a culture in which elites rarely had social
initiatives apart from the Catholic Church and that,
thus, maintained Catholic values al the center of philan-
thropy. Under this state of affairs, the Church, therefore,
not only kept its place as the main social care provider
throughout the nineteenth century but became the core of
sector, increasing her power. A dominant Church in the
social arena was only one of the aspects of this strong
¡actual power, whose values and resources were brought
lo the large and harsh struggle for political supremacy it
had with the States of the region in the nineteenth century
(particularly Mexico). A strugglc that in sorne cases, has
continued ever since in the form of distrust, competition,
.¡¡Id even open conflict.
263
In this manner Mexico and Central America entered
the twentieth century. For the case of Mexico, after the
Mexican Revolution of 1910, the State managed to be-
come thc main actor in political affairs and economic
planning. The State controlled also public action and
validated the spaces and arenas for public involvement.
Furthermore, the State legitimized social organization
through state-sanctioned corporate organizations. Atten-
tion to social needs was subordinated to the political
agenda and to groups' loyalty to the official party; in
consequence, the understanding of citizenship carne lo
be equal lo partisan membership and the exercise of
voice and citizen participation in public affairs were
oRen not tolerated. Social entrepreneurs were coopted,
bribed, or even persecuted and/or imprisoned. Challeng-
ing this state of affairs and aiming at opening up partid-
pation spaces, a number of social movernents (SM)
appeared through the early to middle twentieth century,
whose impetus brought up in the late 1960s a contra-
cultural movement leaded by the students of the National
University (UNAM). Though this movement was vicious-
ly repressed, it gaye risc to a number of other different
social actors, such as independent unions, feminists, en-
vironmental, and human rights movements, among
others. In parallel by late 1960s Paulo Freire's methodol-
ogies for education, the Theology of Liberation and the
adoption of alternative and self-help development ideas,
spread widely and informed NGOs' work. Afl these factors
contributed to the emergence of highly politicized orga-
nizations and forms of civic action, from urban SM to
independent peasant networks, as wehl as a growing num-
ber of NGOs. Mcanwhile, the Catholk Church continued
p1ayin8 a key sponsorship role to welfare associations and
NGOs initiatives and kept cayturing most private dona-
tions, mainly because private funding of social affairs was
seen with suspicion by the state.
During the last quarter of the twentieth century recur-
rent economic crises limited the Mexican government
capacity to pay loyalty and attend client groups, dimin-
ishing its legitimacy. For CSOs, these economic crisis
compounded by a rigid fiscal framework and lack of
philanthropic culture, were major limitations to their
growth and action. Nonetheless, the 1985s earthquakes
in Mexico sprung up an unprecedented and widespread
social participation and meant a turning-point for a num-
ber of social actors that realized their own collective
potential and weaved new links in the social fabric.
From then on, organized collective action started to
have unprecedented achievements by lobbying and insti-
tutional building. Key examples of the Mexican society
capacity to pressure for, proposing and even building
 Civil Society and Social Capital in Mex co and Central America
institutions are the National Commission for Human
Rights, the NAFTA "parallel agreements" on labor and
environment (resulting from joint Iobbying of Mexican,
Canadian, and American CSOs). Most noteworthy, CS
forced the government to step out from the IFE, the
national agency charged of organizing aud overseeing
elections. These societal achievements paved the way to
the arrival of the first democratically elected Mayor of
Mexico City and a plural Congress in 1997 (when the
official party lost the majority of seats), and finally a
peaceful alternation in the Executive branch in 2000.
The new administration, as expected, widened participa-
tory mechanisms at different leveis and spheres so CSOs
could express their views on public policy implementa-
tion, thus opening unprecedented participation in the
design, planning, and scrutiny of policies and programs.
More public funding for CSOs and larger government-
CSOs collaboration followed, as did the Law for the Right
to Information and a Law aimed at Fostering CSOs Activ-
ities. Private resources to finance social action also grew
and contributed to create a better climate for the develop-
ment of CSOs, though did not match the needs of a
resource-hungry and speedily developing sector.
By 2006, a major social coalition proposed an
agenda for the in-coming government - the Acuerdos of
Chapultepec - signed by alt presidential candidates.
Nevertheless, the incoming government not only
neglected them but also dismantied the agency dedicated
lo fostering CS-state relations and radically reduced CSO
funding and participation spaces.
In Central America, with the exception of Costa Rica
and to a certain degree of Honduras, Theology of Libera-
tion as well as various Marxist ideas influenced SM, labor,
middle class and popular organizations against the brutal
military dictatorships that governed the region (Paige,
1997). In Guatemala, the guerrilla warfare (mid-1950s),
and radicalization of Maya indigenous leadership linked
to Marxist guerrilla (1970s) faced brutal military repres-
sion but finally attained the change of the political regime.
In El Salvador, SM started as early as 1925 posing social
demands to the authoritarian government. The failure of
democratization efforts of the opposition coalition in the
1972 presidential election resulted in the emergence of
guerrilla organizations linked to SMs who fought for
labor rights and democratiiation. Political polarization
led to civil war which lasted until the early 1990s when
a Peace Treaty was signed. In Nicaragua, the student
movement turned in a guerilla (late 1960s) that ended
with the Somoza dictatorship. The Sandinista govern-
ment, which took over, gaye way to political change and
democratization.
l'his, decades-long struggle against dictatorships and
systematic violations of human rights by vested interests
shaped Central America's CS organizations and SMs.
Thus, the construction of democracy became one of ihe
main objectives of a number of organizations which have
played a major role in the democratization of the region
(Thomas & Armony, 2000). In Honduras, Guatemala, and
El Salvador, for instance, several organizations have nel-
worked aiming at increasing authorities' accountability,
monitoring electoral campaigns, as well as promoting
participation and citizenship construction. On this une,
it is remarkable the Asociación Latinoamericana de Orga-
nizaciones de Promoción, an example of how regional net-
works can successfully flght powerfull vested interests.
The arrival of democratic governments, the opening
of participation in public affairs, and the support of
international flnancing, have contributed to an increasing
differentiation of civil society in CA. Nonetheless, a large
dependence on foreign donors has signiflcantly shaped
the agenda of organizations in the region, though sorne
local agendas have somehow emerged. In Guatemala,
Nicaragua, Honduras, and El Salvador, for instance, (he
local private sector has started to sponsor social and
political local projects on issues like environment, vio-
lence, development, women empowerment, and disaster
relief. More recently, trade issues have also raised spedal
attention. NGOs and grassroots organizations in Central
America have proposed ideological and market alter.
natives lo neoliberalism (Hale, 1994). Likewise, several
NGO have participated in Central American Free Trade
Agreement (CAFTA) negotiations, stimulated by interna-
tional organizations such as International Developmcnt
Bank (11313). This has contributed to foster colleclive
action diversiflcation and to attenuate social polarixat ion,
slowly conflguring new organizational paths. One mIer
esting outcome of this process is the number of local
organizations dedicated lo attend gender issues, Iikc
¡:ondo Centroamericano de Mujeres and Pro-Mujer, whkh
deal mainly with women involvement in community de-
velopment, violence, and women empowerment. The en- ,
vironment has also become an issue of attention anda ¡
number of conservation and lobbying organizations
have been formed, like the Fundación Defensores de la
Naturaleza in Guatemala.
This evolution of the associative sector has been ano-
lyzed in the region around three main different conccpt:
Civil Society (CS), Social Movements (SMs) (which luí
reasons of space we will discuss in the same section) and
Social Capital (SC). Though these approaches are no¡
incompatible, each considers different elements as central
for the sector and therefore focuses on distinct types oí
 1
Civil Society and Social Capital in Mexico and Central America
ictors and organizational forms. These approaches rarely
debate among themselves.
vil Society
¡vil Society in the region is generally understood in
rdation to political society and citizens-rulers relations
vilhin a theory of democracy, and therefore, debates have
[icen dominated by political scientists. The main issues
discussed are: the study of the relations between CS
md the state (Olvera Rivera, 2003); CS contribution to
Mexico's democratization (Cadena-Roa, 2003); the crea-
non of institutions and SMs reactions to public policies.
In Mexico, research on CS has been organized around
wo main traditions. One marshaled by Manuel Canto,
which develops issues like participation, civic organiza-
mons and its relationships to public policy (Canto Chac,
998). A second one is leaded by Alberto Olvera, who,
huilding on Habermas and Cohen and Arato, sees CS as a
clf-limited sphere, differentiated of the market and the
'tate, seeking to influence the public sphere by bringing
mp alternative solutions to problems derived from power
ud the need of adding plurality to society. l3esides these
wo unes of thought, in Mexico, there have been also
iudies on the number of CSOs (Verdw'.co lgartúa,
003) and their legal framework, the networks they have
uilt, their relations with political parties, their use of
rechnology, their experiences at the local level, and their
international links (see Cadena-Roa, 2004).
In Central America, the fight against dictatorship and/
mr civil war has produced research concerned with: how
ocietal actors build relations with the state, as well as with
he military and paramilitary forces. Thus, convcntional
wisdorn in CA understands the concept of CS in Gramsci's
erms; and though rnost authors acknowledge that there is
a distinction between CS and political society, they are
concerned with how to build up CS hegemonic project in
a context of social movernent organizations' fragmenta-
tion. This is specially the case for Nicaragua, El Salvador
and Guatemala. Authors are also interested with the hm-
ited influence sorne organizations and SMs exert in public
policies and elections monitoring, mainly in Nicaragua, El
Salvador and Honduras. Others are interested with the
growth, diversity, and fragmentation of organizations in
lhe region (Monge Granados, 1999).
Social Movements are ¡ti the region a significant part of
CS, and even as a prornoter of the rights that allow its
dcvelopment and strengthening. The difference is that SMs
use noninstitutional channels to raise their demands, while
the rest of CSOs use more oRen institutional or noncon-
tentious means. Iherefore, SM concept is concerned with
noninstitutional forms of political participation used by
265
powerless and poor people groups when the institutional
political participation forms (such as parties, elections, and
bodies of pohitical representation) are closed to their
demands. In Mexico, the study of SMs became a booming
industry. It encompasses a large body of literature focusing
on particular cases, secking lo describe relations, processes,
and outcomes, such as labor movement history and studies
of severa¡ fields of collective action on the assumption that
they were expressions of CS. The study of urban move-
ments became particularly salient because they were multi-
class - labor and recently migrated peasants - and had a
significant political potential; they were also seen as the
modern expression of traditional movements controUed
by the State.
In Mexico, SMs research has put special attention on
domestic agents' role on social change in relation with
state institutions, and explored the relations among struc-
tures, social actors and the perspectives of democracy
building (González Casanova 1979 (19651). Research en-
compasses pre-1968 movements, as well as the 1968
movement itself; its impact on the country's polity, its
consequences on the democratization process and on
transition to democracy (Cadena-Roa, 2003).
In Central Arnerica years of political struggle and
polarization has also produced studies on SMs that have
been linked to actors in confhict, either from the left or
right. Departing from the concept of CS, other research
trend analyzes NGO and SMs' ideological orientations.
There are also a number of scholars interested in the role
of CSOs of Central America peace processes, poverty
reduction and political consensus building, mainly in
Guatemala, Nicaragua, and El Salvador (Castellanos
Ponciano, 1996). More recently, there have also been
studies analyzing the relations among Central American
CSOs and international agencies and the impact of
foreign aid organizations (Ortega Carpio & Luz, 1994).
More recently, research on SM in the region is guided
by specific questions seeking to test ami devetop theory,
such as: the relationship between movements and rights;
the influence of political opportunities in grassroots
electoral participation, or the impact of SMs on public
services planning. Contemporarily, four main (orces im-
pinge on the rise of SMs in Mexico and Central Arnerica
and its study: struggles for recognition; anti neoliberal
movements; seizing opportunities opened by democrati-
zation; international networks of advocacy and support.
Many SMs seek recognition based on specific identities
such as indigenous peoples, women, and indigenous
women. The Zapatista uprising in Chiapas, Mexico,
created a whole body of literature (Ruiz & Lorena,
2005). Research on anti neoliberal movements analyzes
266 Civil Society and Social Capital in Mexico and Central Amenca
how econornic global pressures impacting poor population
livelihood translate into protests, as well as resistance
against neoliberal policies constraining access lo social
rights, from which international agencies and local govern-
ments are the parts lo blame. SMs role on promoting
transition to dernocracy in Central America, has also been
studied. Recent approaches point research questions on
SMs collective action in the frame of a more open polity
that protects civil and political rights, independent political
parties, competitive elections and the opening of new chan-
nels between institutional and noninstitutional politics.
Finaily, SM studies in Mexico and Central America
analyze the impact on local collective action of internation-
al nongovernmental organizations (INGOs) and advocacy
networks, as well as the spreading of global communi-
cations in a context of international treaties protecting
rights and pulting under scrutiny local authorities. Those
studies recognize new and signifkant players al global leve¡
on topics such as labor, farmers, and farm workers, trade
advocacy, imrnigrants, human rights, and environmental
protection.
Social Capital
SC in the region is understood as sum o' relations among
people that facilitate coordination, resource mobilization,
and economic development. It ernphasizes civic virtues
and values such as trust, reciprocity, and comrnitment. In
the region there were severa¡ works on the matter since the
late 1980s (Durston, 2000), but it was the publication of
Putnams' Making Democracy Work which became most
influential (Gordon, 2006; Millán & Gordon, 2004). Sorne
authors acknowledge the Third Sector as a concept thaI
identifies a number of actors that the orthodox under-
standing of CS does not apprehend. Other authors study
CSO involvernent in development, recognizing that it is
an economic, social, and political process, and that asso-
ciative experiences can produce alternative solutions lo
those proposed by the State and the Market. Within this
understanding authors analyze community actors and
their networks; institutional arrangements as reciprocity
and norms; and cooperative processes. 'lhey understand
that associative forrns act against State failures and power
abuse, and that civic action helps solving complex problems
such as poverty. This perspective has brought up lo light
several organizations previously neglected by researchers
and policy planners in Mexico, like rural comrnunity
based organizations, comrnunity foundations (Natal,
2007), rnicrocredit (Conde, 2000) and assistance organi-
zations (Guadarrama Sánchez, 2008), among others. The
SC perspective does not carry a specific political program,
but expects an incremental civil influence of societal
actors on Market and State affairs. Other group of new
studies include topics like social organizations NGOs
(Méndez, 1998); organizations participation in global
affairs such as international trade (Natal & González,
2002). Likewise, sorne scholars have increasingly acknowl-
edged the complexity of associational forms in different
arcas olí social life and have developcd research on associ-
ational performance (Espinosa & Christina, 2008).
Though SC studies in Central America are beginning
lo develop, at least three mainstreams of analysis can be
identified: one influenced by Coleman (Cruz, 2001);
another related lo Putnam's civic engagement view; and a
third informed by Durston's understanding of community
cooperation (Durston, 2000). Often, SC is conceived as
the quantity and quality of grassroots organizations
and researchers also inquire about NGO's positive or
negative impact on SC (Miranda Abaunza, 2003). Other
explored topics are, SG relation to violence in urban poor
settings and to democracy building in an environment of
repression; impact of agriculture programs in Nicaragua
and Costa Rica on SC; poverty and violence in Guatemala;
and citizen participation and electoral processcs in
Honduras.
In parallel lo academic work, there is a large grey
literature produced by a number of NGOs as in-house
research. The Mexican Centre of Philanthropy (CEMEFI),
using a definition of Third Sector that makes little differ-
entiation between societal actors and their processes with-
in democracy or development theory, has published
research on volunteering, philanthropy, and corporale
social responsibility. Similarly, in Guatemala, Nicaragua.
and El Salvador, organizations have produced inleresting
research closely relaed lo donors' interests. Main topics
discussed are: local democracy, environment, violence,
development, women ernpowerment and disaster aid.
Empirical Data
For the case of Mexico, Calvillo and Favela (Calvillo &
Favela, 2004) identified 8,618 CSOs in 1998 and 10,805
in 2000, a 25.4% increase in the period. Of them, 1.7%
were created before 1940, while 25.5% were created in thc
1980s and 52.3% in the 1990s. Thcse figures indicate that
every year new CSOs are formed and that sorne of them are
dissolved or enter into latency, while a reduced number
endure through long periods. A 36% of these CSOs lacked
any legal registration and 53% legally registered as asocia-
ciones civiles. Most Mexican CSOs (73%) promote welfare
and development. There are other data basis with similar
numbers, like CEMEFI with 10,485 OSCs registered
(http://cemefi.org/directorio/buscasl.php taccess: 121
FEB/091 and the National Registrer of CSOs with 8,785
 Civil Society and Social Capital in Mexico and Central America
201.155.34.1 77/buscadoK)SC 1 /index.aspx E access:
/091).
Mexico there is also the very controversia] study by
n and associates' (Salamon et al., 1999), which most
cted finding is that the Mexican Nonproñt sector
represents the smallest one in Latin America, smal-
1 (han Haiti's. For these authors, the Mexican NPS
hare of total paid employrnent in 1995 of 0.4%,
the 22 country average was 4.8% and the Latin
an of 2.2%); volunteer time 0.7% (Latin American
of 3.0%). They report the strong Catholic Church
ce through charitable service entilies (hospitais and
). They also stress that, relative lo funding, Mexico's
a fee-dominant country (85% of the NI'S revenue).
r, this study underestimates the size and impor-
fthe Mexican NPS, and of its volunteering, since a
of activities developed in the social economy were
:ounted for and a large number of organizations
t acknowledged because they could not be captured
;tudy's conceptual framework.
the studies on Mexican CSOs, have in common
ey fail to capture those small, informal, and re-
constrained organizations that do fol need/want
legal registration but still develop activities in
of third parties.
2006 LAPOP survey includes an indicator of mier-
1 trust for several Latin American countries. 'I'he
reports that in Mexico a fifth of the population
es that people within their community are very
rthy, while almost 50% think they are relatively
rthy; one quarter thinks they are little and 10%
people aren't trustworthy. In comparison with
American countries, Mexico has larger levels of
an Panama, but similar lo those of Nicaragua and
ala; and less than El Salvador, Honduras, and Costa
e Ricardo el al., 2007). The LAPOP 2006 reports
case in the participation in religious organiza-
- the construction of local agendas, and the reduction of
id a decrease in the participation in Unions
P, 2006).
Central Arnerica, Booth and Bayer (1998), analyzed
opinion surveys conducted in the early 1990s lo
the links between Ihe formation of political and
apital and levels ofdemocracy existing in the region.
ing multiple regression techniques they studied
ike political participation, political attitudes, values,
rnocratic values, they found that CS activism raise
ients' levels of social and political capital. This study
thaI formal group activism contribules significantly
sitively Lo political information (beta=0.253) and
rsonal trust (beta=0.054); while communal leve¡
n contributes negatively to political information
267
(-0.097), but positively to interpersonal trust (0.059).
The authors also found that the power of civil society
activism for political information levels is very strong
(R2 of 0.25), while it accounts very little for interpersonal
trust (less than 1%). They report that political repression,
destroys both, social capital (information and trust) and
L~ -~- 1
-
political capital (democratic norms, voting, contacting,
and campaigning), what may indicate that political con-
texi is determinant in the shaping of civil society and in
the formation of social and political capital. Most notably,
authors also report that GDP per capita does fol correlate
positively with social and political capital. In terms of
trust, the LAPOP for El Salvador shows that 35.1%, have
much trust in their community, the 28.3% relative, 25.8%
sorne and the 10.8% none. El Salvador has more than the
average of the region, and LAPOP states that it is among
the countries with larger trust.
Concluding Assessment
i'he hallmark of Mexican CS during the twentieth century
was its quest for democracy and its long struggle against
corporatism, cooptation, patronage, corruption and au-
thoritarianisrn. Now-a-days the sector is growing, strength-
ening, and diversifying itself. However, there are still many
challenges, chiefly, the creation of trust as a main compo-
nent of social capital, the increase in citizens' participation,
the overcoming of an elite culture of Catholic philanthropy
and popular expectations that the State could and should
solve al¡ kinds of problems with no need of nongovern-
mental public action.
Sirnilarly, Central American CS has systematically
faced violence and human rights abuses but still contrib-
uted signiflcantly to Ihe transition to democracy in the
region. Sorne of the challenges to be faced in the region
are mainly, an increase in citizens' participation, more
CSOs diversification, a larger interaction with citizens,
social and ideological polarization.
Cross-References
• Civil Society and Democracy
• Civil Society Theory: Cohen and AtaLo
• Civil Society Theory: Habermas
• Civil Society Theory: Gramsci
• Civil Society in Post-Conflict Scenarios
• Centro Mexicano para la Filantropia, AC (CEMEFI)
• Freire, Paulo
• Mutual Organizations/Mutual Societies
• Peasant and Farmers' Organizations
• Social Economy
• Social Movernents
268 - - Civil Society and Social Capital in North Africa

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Cadena-Roa, J. (2003). State pacts, cutes, and social movenscnts in
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Cadena-Roa, J. (Ed.). (2004). Las organizaciones civiles mexicanas hoy.
México: UNAM.
Calvillo, M., & Favela, A. (2004). Dimensiones cuantitativas de las orga-
nizaciones civiles en México. In 1. Cadena-Roa (Eds.), Las organiza- Civil Society and Social Capital in
ciones civiles mexicanas hoy (pp. 73-120). México: UNAM. North Africa
Canto Chac, M. (1998). De lo cívico a lo público. Una discusión de las
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