'Border czar' Harris says private companies have spent $4.2 BILLION investing ... trends now
Private companies have now poured $4.2 billion in northern Central America under the Biden administration, a welcome investment the White House credits to Vice President Kamala Harris' work to address the 'root causes' of migration.
That figure is up from $3.2 billion last year and includes money from retailers like Target and Columbia Sportswear, among around 45 other companies.
The announcement comes just as Harris is expected to meet with business and government leaders in Washington on Monday to launch a new effort called Central America Forward, focused on economic development and labor rights as well as a push to tackle corruption, an administration official said on a call with reporters.
President Biden tapped Harris to lead efforts to reduce migration at the U.S.-Mexico border in March 2021, making her the target of conservative ire as migration figures continued to swell to record highs.
As pressure grew for Harris to visit the border, the White House later clarified Harris was only tasked with addressing 'root causes' for migration - like crime and poverty.
Columbia committed to purchasing $200 million in products, creating 6,900 jobs in the region over five years. Millicom committed to investing an additional $350 million in broadband by 2025, in addition to its $700 million commitment for 2023 and 2024.
Nestle and Nescafe committed to supporting more than 7,500 coffee producers, while Honduran Coffee Company and Grupo Cadelga committed to partnering with the U.S. Agency for International Developmenet (USAID) to assist over 10,000 coffee farmers.
Harris focused her efforts on increasing investment in the northern triangle countries - El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras.
Concerns of corruption have led companies to back out of millions of dollars' worth of investments, however.
Arrivals from northern triangle countries have declined since mid-2021, while migration from other regions has soared.
In December, U.S. officials counted 42,637 encounters with Cubans 35,389 encounters
