page_title: Catemaco (municipality)
section_title: Socioeconomics
hierarchical_section_title: Catemaco (municipality) / Socioeconomics
caption_attribution_description: English: fisherman on Lake Catemaco, Veracruz, Mexico
context_page_description: Catemaco Municipality is one of the 212 municipalities that make up the Mexican state of Veracruz.
  It is located in the state's Los Tuxtlas. The municipal seat is the city of Catemaco.
  In the 2005 INEGI Census, the municipality reported a total population of 46,702, of whom 22,965 lived in the municipal seat.
  Ethnic composition is primarily of mestizo origins. Indigenous language speakers number less than 500.
  The municipality of Catemaco covers a total surface area of 710.67 km² along the Gulf of Mexico between the foothills of Volcano San Martín Tuxtla and the Sierra Santa Marta, and incorporate Laguna Catemaco and Laguna Sontecomapan plus a large part of the Los Tuxtlas Biosphere Reserve.
  Catemaco borders the municipalities of San Andrés Tuxtla to the west, Hueyapan de Ocampo and Soteapan to the south and Tatahuicapan de Juárez and Mecayapan to the east.
  Economically Catemaco depends on a mix of tourism, cattle ranching, fishery and agriculture. Statistically the municipality ranks as one of the poorer ones in Veracruz.
context_section_description: The municipality is classified as having a medium level of socioeconomic marginalization, with 64.5% living in poverty and 13.1% living in extreme poverty. 26.9% are employed in agriculture, fishing and forestry, 15.5% in manufacturing (mostly handcrafts) and 56.9% in commerce and tourism. However, the municipality’s main income is from ranching, fishing and agriculture.
  The most widespread activity is ranching, mostly raising cattle, followed by pigs and domestic fowl. Next is fishing. Lake Catemaco is one of the most productive in Mexico, but large net fishing is prohibited in order avoid overfishing.  However, over 2,000 fishermen earn a subsistence living capturing about 2,000 tons each year. Main catches include tilapia (an introduced species), a sardine called topote and a fresh water snail called tegogolo. The most important crops are corn, followed by coffee and green chili peppers, but beans, rice, watermelons, oranges, mangos and coconuts are also grown.
  The local gastronomy is characterized by its ranching and fishing activities (both fresh and salt water) . Common ingredients include tegogolos, a fresh water snail said to be an aphrodisiac, freshwater eels, tochogobi (a type of mojarra) and pork, especially a preparation called “carne de chango” because it takes like monkey meat.
  The area holds deposits of gold, silver, zinc and other materials, but here is no mining and no major industry.  Handcrafts are made, mostly guitars called jarana jarochas (often decorated with snail and seashells) and decorative items for the tourist trade.
  The most important commercial activity is tourism, mostly centered in the city of Catemaco. The area attracts mostly Mexican visitors, with the busiest times being traditional vacation periods such as Holy Week, some parts of summer and long weekends. Most come to see the lake, including boat tours to the various islands, and visit the sorcerers. The area has also attracted the film industry, with films such as Medicine Man with Sean Connery and Apocalypto, filmed by Mel Gibson .
  Ecological tourism has grown in the municipality, allowing rural communities such as Ejido Lopez Mateos and Ejido Miguel Hidalgo to offer cabins and access to attractions such as rainforest, rivers and waterfalls, such as Cola de Caballo and Poza Reina. There are also archeological sites such as Las Margaritas and a pyramid on El Cerrito just outside Catemaco city.
  The most popular attraction of this type is the Nanciyaga Ecologial Reserve, a private tourist attraction which offers tours, mud facials, cabins, ritual cleansings, temazcals, a dock on Lake Catemaco and a mineral spring. The site cover four hectares just outside the city of Catemaco and was created in 1983. The water from the mineral spring is drinkable and made available to visitors using cups made from large green leaves.
caption: Man fishing on Lake Catemaco
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