SAN PEDRO SULA, Honduras, (Reuters) – Regional leaders yesterday called for “shock” investment in infrastructure in Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador to reduce the number of migrants flowing from the three economically fragile countries, bound for the United States.
Efforts to stem the flow of Central Americans, many seeking legal asylum in the United States, have gained impetus as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to pursue a mix of threats and stepped-up immigration enforcement. Poverty and rampant corruption that allows drug trafficking and criminal gangs to flourish in the so-called Northern Triangle have prompted many to seek a better life in the United States.
“The Northern Triangle region needs a shock of investment,” said Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez, host of a regional summit that wrapped up yesterday that also included political and business leaders from Mexico, Colombia and the Dominican Republic as well as all six Central American nations.
In the summit’s final declaration, the leaders signaled their “commitment to promote the formation of a great international initiative for the massive generation of jobs and productive investments in our countries.”
