The pledged aid package offers $255 million in relief funds to mitigate the damage from persistent drought as well as food shortages …reports Asian Lite News
The Unites States Vice President Kamala Harris has pledged an additional $310 million humanitarian aid for Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador in order to tackle wave of migration from those countries to the US, according to media reports.
The vice president had held virtual discussions with Guatemalan President Alejandro Giammattei regarding the funding on Monday.
According to reports, Harris spokeswoman Symone Sanders said the leaders discussed the need for long-term economic growth to create jobs and stop the flow of migrants to the U.S., which has caused an early political and humanitarian crisis for President Joe Biden.
The aid package includes $255 million in relief funds to mitigate the damage from persistent drought as well as food shortages and the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Harris’ office.
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The money would also fund safety precautions for refugees and asylum seekers and provide health and disaster-relief services to people in those three countries.
Another $55 million in Department of Agriculture funds would go to strengthen Guatemala’s farming industry and expand access to daily meals and literacy programs in Guatemala and Honduras, Harris’ office said, according to media reports.
Biden chose the vice president to lead the diplomatic response to the migration crisis by engaging with Central American governments.
The new role of Harris resembles that of Biden when he was vice president and asked by then President Barack Obama in 2014 and 2015 to lead diplomatic efforts in the Northern Triangle after a surge of unaccompanied minors from those countries began arriving in the United States.