Vice President Kamala Harris has helped companies direct investments outside the United States and into the economy of Central America in a move that the Biden administration claims will decrease record levels of illegal immigration.
Harris, who serves as the administration’s border czar, has frequently argued that the federal approach to border security should center upon addressing economic instability, climate change, and other “root causes” that purportedly lead to illegal immigration. She has galvanized a combined $4.2 billion in “private sector commitments to create economic opportunity in northern Central America,” according to a fact sheet from the White House.
The federal government’s Central America Forward framework created a new Northern Central America Investment Facilitation Team which will “support clean energy infrastructure development, facilitate private sector operations, and promote sustainable economic development in the region.” USAID will sponsor workforce development programs, while the newly formed Central America Service Corps will engage young people in El Salvador, Guatemala, and Honduras with “paid community service opportunities.”
Central America Forward aims to provide one million jobs in the region, as well as heighten access to the financial system, create a $75 million debt fund for small businesses, and facilitate $500 million in infrastructure deals. Federation for American Immigration Reform Head of Government Relations RJ Hauman said in a statement provided to The Daily Wire that “none of these investments serve as a deterrent for illegal immigration to the United States.”
