Mexico’s southern region is leading the country’s growth, at double the pace of the national level and fueled by investment and construction projects, the Finance Ministry said.

The region, which includes some of the country’s poorest states, grew 6% in annual terms during the second quarter, ahead of the 3% to 4% expansion that the overall economy is expected to post this year and next, according to a Finance Ministry statement. Earlier this month, the ministry said it expected overall growth in Latin America’s second-largest economy to be between 2.5% and 3.5% in 2024.

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President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who hails from the oil producing state of Tabasco in the southeast, has put a focus on growing Mexico’s southern region through government investment. Two of his flagship projects, the Olmeca refinery and the Maya train that cuts through the Yucatan Peninsula, have received billions of dollars in state financing.

The ministry has also rolled out fiscal incentives for companies that choose to invest in the region.

“The global relocation of value chains presents an unprecedented opportunity for Mexico. From the Finance Ministry we are working to make sure this investment is equitable and distributed across the territory, capitalizing the competitive advantages of the south,” the statement said.