By Alexandra Jaffe - The Associated Press
Vice President Kamala Harris will announce this Thursday the commitment of a dozen companies and organizations to invest in Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador as part of the government's efforts to mitigate the root causes of immigration to the United States.
Participants in this initiative include
giants such as Mastercard and Microsoft
, as well as Pro Mujer, a non-profit organization that focuses on helping low-income women in Latin America, along with Harvard University and the Economic Forum. World.
The vice president will foreseeably make a "call to action" for
companies and non-profit organizations to make new commitments
to promote economic opportunities in Central America.
The goal is to focus aid on supporting vulnerable populations, such as women and youth, and invest in Internet access, job training programs and efforts to combat food shortages.
It is part of his mission to address the root causes of emigration to the United States, a task assigned to him by President Joe Biden in March.
Harris has had multiple calls with the presidents of Guatemala and Mexico, and has held meetings with interest groups, policy experts, and businesses in the region.
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She also plans to visit Guatemala and Mexico in early June
on her first trip abroad as vice president.
Harris has emphasized the need for economic development in the region and for public-private partnerships to address the challenges there.
The Administration is backing a proposal to
provide $ 7 billion in aid to Guatemala, El Salvador, and Honduras
in the hope that the support can address the poverty and violence that drive people to flee to the United States.
Latino congressmen meet with Kamala Harris to discuss sending aid to Central Americans
May 18, 202100: 51
But increased migration at the border has turned into a major political headache for Harris and Biden.
Republicans accuse them of inaction in what they say is a crisis created in part by the president's decision to
halt construction of the
US-Mexico
border wall
and to end some restrictions on asylum seekers.
The month of
April was the second month with the highest number of unaccompanied children
found at the border, after the all-time high in March, and the total number of Border Patrol encounters in April increased 3% compared to March, marking the lowest level. high since April 2000.
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The April encounters are not directly comparable because most of the detainees were quickly expelled from the United States under federal powers related to the pandemic that deny the right to seek asylum, and since being expelled does not carry any legal sanction, many try cross several times.
The increase has tested the ability of the Border Patrol and the Department of Health, which keeps minors in shelters until they can be placed with relatives or sponsors in the United States while authorities determine if they have a legal right to remain in the country. , either for asylum or for some other reason.
It has also drawn criticism from Republicans, who point to
Harris and Biden's
decision
not to visit the border
to examine the situation as evidence of their negligence.