Seventy percent of handicrafts in Mexico are sold through informal channels, making them especially vulnerable to unfair competition, according to estimates from the Ministry of Economy.
Based on this assessment, the Oaxaca State Congress approved, with 29 votes, a resolution urging state and municipal authorities to reserve public sales spaces exclusively for authentic, local handicrafts during Holy Week 2026.
The resolution, approved under the criteria of urgency and obvious resolution, is addressed to the Oaxaca State Ministry of Economic Development, the Ministry of Tourism, the municipality of Oaxaca de Juárez, and the municipalities that organize craft fairs during the holiday season.
The objective is to assure national and international tourists of the authenticity of the products they purchase, counteract the presence of foreign goods, strengthen the local economy, and preserve the state’s cultural identity.
PRI congressman Javier Casique Zárate, one of the initiative’s promoters, placed the issue of informality at the heart of the analysis.
“Seventy percent of handicrafts in Mexico are sold through informal channels, which makes them even more vulnerable to these kinds of practices,” he warned.
He cautioned that the lack of verification and oversight mechanisms in commercial spaces exacerbates the problem and facilitates the presence of imitations.
Casique Zárate warned that the impact is not only economic.
“It creates confusion for the consumer, especially for tourists, who seek authenticity and end up buying products that do not represent the work or tradition of Oaxaca,” he pointed out.
He added that ancestral techniques passed down from generation to generation face the risk of losing economic viability due to unfair competition.
The legislator noted that the federal Ministry of Culture considers the handicraft sector a strategic element for cultural tourism, which represents approximately 8% of the national tourism GDP.
Likewise, data from INEGI (the National Institute of Statistics and Geography) indicates that more than 12 million people in the country are involved in artisanal activities, many of them in vulnerable situations.
For her part, Morena party representative Mónica Belén López Javier argued that the practice of selling imported products as if they were Oaxacan handicrafts not only harms the economy of local producers but also violates the right of visitors to purchase genuine pieces.
“We cannot allow the efforts of our communities to compete on unequal terms,” she stated.
López Javier called for viewing Holy Week as both an opportunity and a responsibility.
“This season represents one of the periods of greatest tourist influx in our state. It is an opportunity to strengthen our local economy, but also a responsibility to protect it,” she said.
Both legislators agreed that the appeal does not seek to restrict trade but rather to guarantee fair conditions. “It is not about exclusion, it is about protection. It is not about limiting trade, it is about guaranteeing fair conditions,” López Javier maintained.
Source: elpinero
