USAID will provide additional aid to Guatemala worth US$39 million and US$115 million to El Salvador to curb the influx of migrants from Central America to the US.
During her visit to Guatemala on 15-16 June, Samantha Power met President Alejandro Giammattei and emphasized how vital it is to fight corruption and curb irregular migration by boosting the local job market.
“There are CEOs literally waiting on the sidelines to invest and create jobs in Guatemala. The key to unlocking their investment is the government taking anti-corruption seriously and ensuring that the rule of law is respected and people’s money is not stolen,” she said.
“We can work with local partners in Central America to expand opportunities for youth and help them get away from violence,” Power said, announcing the aid during a conference on migration at the Central American University.
Power also announced US$12 million for small and medium-sized companies in Honduras, Guatemala, and El Salvador to help them to recover after the lockdowns introduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In total, the American administration has committed to allocate US$4 billion to curb the growing migration from Central America. El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras already have large migrant communities in the U.S. (over 2 million Salvadorans reported as of 2010, over 1.3 million Guatemalans as of 2015, and over 1 million Hondurans as of 2020). However, their numbers may increase significantly as migrant caravans have recently resumed, bringing together thousands of people heading towards the Mexican-U.S. border in an attempt to escape food insecurity, poverty, high unemployment, and the violence perpetrated by gangs and drug traffickers in their countries.
